1
2
as in employed
to provide with a paying job
decided to take her on as store manager
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in borrowed
to take for one's own use (something originated by another)
recently arrived immigrants who are eager to take on the language and culture of their adopted homeland
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of took on
Later, the McDiarmid family—who lamented the closure of the original hotel and dreamt of opening their own—took on the passion project with help from a stable of longtime Tofino residents.
—
Jennie Nunn, Condé Nast Traveler, 10 Jan. 2026
Ball was joined on the bench in street clothes by Collin Sexton, who sat out with a neck strain when the Hornets took on the Heat in East Group C action at Kasaya Center on Friday night.
—Roderick Boone, Charlotte Observer, 7 Nov. 2025
That is certainly true for series star Robert Englund, who took on the role of Freddy Krueger.
—James Brizuela, MSNBC Newsweek, 31 Oct. 2025
In 2003, Matthew Broderick took on the role of Harold Hill for a television movie adaptation.
—Alexis Mikulski Ruiz, Rolling Stone, 31 Oct. 2025
The concept dates back centuries but took on a new life in the twentieth, when Russian theosophist couple Nicholas and Helena Roerich led an expedition in the 1920s to find Shambhala in the Altai Mountains.
—Kieran Press-Reynolds, Pitchfork, 24 Oct. 2025
After his passing, Mango’s chief executive officer Roni Ruiz took on the role of chairman of the board.
—Rosemary Feitelberg, Footwear News, 17 Oct. 2025
Sauk County in 2025 took on the responsiblity for and covered some operational tasks that UW-Platteville had previously covered, such as snow-shoveling and lawn-mowing.
—Kelly Meyerhofer, jsonline.com, 17 Oct. 2025
For television, Eggar starred opposite Yul Brynner in a 1972 CBS adaptation of The King and I and took on the role of the manipulative Phyllis Dietrichson, famously played by Barbara Stanwyck on the big screen, in a 1973 ABC remake of Double Indemnity.
—Chris Koseluk, HollywoodReporter, 17 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for took on
Verb
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This was the third time Wild defenseman Quinn Hughes faced his two younger brothers, Devils center Jack Hughes and defenseman Luke Hughes, in an NHL game.—
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Johnson faced a series of unfortunate events during his time searching for a solution — including shutting off his gas service just before Christmas so the lines under his home would not be damaged.—
Verb
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Many of the small cluster of media are employed by the team itself.—
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Nationwide, advertising on most news sites has collapsed and subscriptions and donations haven’t always proved lucrative enough to fill the gap in order to keep journalists employed.—
Verb
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Topology, which is a concept borrowed from mathematics, describes properties that remain unchanged despite distortions.—
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Maybe a brow gel that goes from borrowed to bought.—
Verb
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The minors were child actors who met Busfield on the set of the FOX series The Cleaning Lady, where Busfield served as a director, according to the arrest warrant, issued by Officer Marvin Kirk Brown.—
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Jeff Brady, executive director of communications for the district, said Tiger Team Two met at least once a month from September to December to discuss and evaluate school enrollment, the capacity and upkeep and condition of each campus, finances and boundaries for each school.—
Verb
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Keilty, who has been preaching defense since the moment he was hired over the offseason, orchestrated a masterful plan to prevent Masco from getting second-chance scoring opportunities, or, for that matter, open looks.—
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The Georgia native was hired by the Lions in 2021 as the outside linebackers coach.—
Verb
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Now, for about five years, she's adopted the method for herself.—
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Many use-of-force policies adopted by police departments endorse that principle.—
Verb
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In middle age, though, the only seaway Melville encountered was the brackish Hudson and his journeys consisted of tabulating the wool unloaded from Manchester, rum from Havana, and tea from Calcutta.—
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American Express, Visa, and Capital One, which dropped 6% by midday trading, all encountered slight downward turns, signaling concern.—
Verb
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Upon arrival, officers found the injured man and woman, and the officers applied a tourniquet and recruited help from emergency medical personnel, per the release from PPB.—
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To help fill the gap, the research team relied on data from 27,670 adults in Sweden recruited to provide dietary data between 1991 and 1996.—
Cite this Entry
“Took on.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/took%20on. Accessed 20 Jan. 2026.
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