Take, v. t. [imp. Took p. p. Taken p. pr. & vb. n. Taking.]
 1. In an active sense; To lay hold of; to seize with the hands, or otherwise; to grasp; to get into one's hold or possession; to procure; to seize and carry away; to convey. Hence, specifically: --
 (a) To obtain possession of by force or artifice; to get the custody or control of; to reduce into subjection to one's power or will; to capture; to seize; to make prisoner; as, to take an army, a city, or a ship; also, to come upon or befall; to fasten on; to attack; to seize; -- said of a disease, misfortune, or the like.
    This man was taken of the Jews.   --Acts xxiii. 27.
 Men in their loose, unguarded hours they take;
 Not that themselves are wise, but others weak.   --Pope.
    They that come abroad after these showers are commonly taken with sickness.   --Bacon.
 There he blasts the tree and takes the cattle
 And makes milch kine yield blood.   --Shak.
 (b) To gain or secure the interest or affection of; to captivate; to engage; to interest; to charm.
    Neither let her take thee with her eyelids.   --Prov. vi. 25.
    Cleombroutus was so taken with this prospect, that he had no patience.   --Wake.
    I know not why, but there was a something in those half-seen features, -- a charm in the very shadow that hung over their imagined beauty, -- which took me more than all the outshining loveliness of her companions.   --Moore.
 (c) To make selection of; to choose; also, to turn to; to have recourse to; as, to take the road to the right.
    Saul said, Cast lots between me and Jonathan my son.  And Jonathan was taken.   --1 Sam. xiv. 42.
    The violence of storming is the course which God is forced to take for the destroying . . . of sinners.   --Hammond.
 (d) To employ; to use; to occupy; hence, to demand; to require; as, it takes so much cloth to make a coat; it takes five hours to get to Boston from New York by car.
    This man always takes time . . . before he passes his judgments.   --I. Watts.
 (e) To form a likeness of; to copy; to delineate; to picture; as, to take a picture of a person.
    Beauty alone could beauty take so right.   --Dryden.
 (f) To draw; to deduce; to derive. [R.]
    The firm belief of a future judgment is the most forcible motive to a good life, because taken from this consideration of the most lasting happiness and misery.   --Tillotson.
 (g) To assume; to adopt; to acquire, as shape; to permit to one's self; to indulge or engage in; to yield to; to have or feel; to enjoy or experience, as rest, revenge, delight, shame; to form and adopt, as a resolution; -- used in general senses, limited by a following complement, in many idiomatic phrases; as, to take a resolution; I take the liberty to say.
 (h) To lead; to conduct; as, to take a child to church.
 (i) To carry; to convey; to deliver to another; to hand over; as, he took the book to the bindery; he took a dictionary with him.
    He took me certain gold, I wot it well.   --Chaucer.
 (k) To remove; to withdraw; to deduct; -- with from; as, to take the breath from one; to take two from four.
 2. In a somewhat passive sense, to receive; to bear; to endure; to acknowledge; to accept. Specifically: --
 (a) To accept, as something offered; to receive; not to refuse or reject; to admit.
    Ye shall take no satisfaction for the life of a murderer.   --Num. xxxv. 31.
    Let not a widow be taken into the number under threescore.   --1 Tim. v. 10.
 (b) To receive as something to be eaten or drunk; to partake of; to swallow; as, to take food or wine.
 (c) Not to refuse or balk at; to undertake readily; to clear; as, to take a hedge or fence.
 (d) To bear without ill humor or resentment; to submit to; to tolerate; to endure; as, to take a joke; he will take an affront from no man.
 (e) To admit, as, something presented to the mind; not to dispute; to allow; to accept; to receive in thought; to entertain in opinion; to understand; to interpret; to regard or look upon; to consider; to suppose; as, to take a thing for granted; this I take to be man's motive; to take men for spies.
    You take me right.   --Bacon.
    Charity, taken in its largest extent, is nothing else but the science love of God and our neighbor.   --Wake.
    [He] took that for virtue and affection which was nothing but vice in a disguise.   --South.
    You'd doubt his sex, and take him for a girl.   --Tate.
 (f) To accept the word or offer of; to receive and accept; to bear; to submit to; to enter into agreement with; -- used in general senses; as, to take a form or shape.
    I take thee at thy word.   --Rowe.
 Yet thy moist clay is pliant to command; . . .
 Not take the mold.   --Dryden.
 3. To make a picture, photograph, or the like, of; as, to take a group or a scene. [Colloq.]
 4.  To give or deliver (a blow to); to strike; hit; as, he took me in the face; he took me a blow on the head. [Obs. exc. Slang or Dial.]
 To be taken aback, To take advantage of, To take air, etc. See under Aback, Advantage, etc.
 To take aim, to direct the eye or weapon; to aim.
 To take along, to carry, lead, or convey.
 To take arms, to commence war or hostilities.
 To take away, to carry off; to remove; to cause deprivation of; to do away with; as, a bill for taking away the votes of bishops. “By your own law, I take your life away.” --Dryden.
 To take breath, to stop, as from labor, in order to breathe or rest; to recruit or refresh one's self.
 To take care, to exercise care or vigilance; to be solicitous. “Doth God take care for oxen?” --1 Cor. ix. 9.
 To take care of, to have the charge or care of; to care for; to superintend or oversee.
 To take down. (a) To reduce; to bring down, as from a high, or higher, place; as, to take down a book; hence, to bring lower; to depress; to abase or humble; as, to take down pride, or the proud. “I never attempted to be impudent yet, that I was not taken down.” --Goldsmith. (b) To swallow; as, to take down a potion. (c) To pull down; to pull to pieces; as, to take down a house or a scaffold. (d) To record; to write down; as, to take down a man's words at the time he utters them.
 To take effect, To take fire. See under Effect, and Fire.
 To take ground to the right or To take ground to the left Mil., to extend the line to the right or left; to move, as troops, to the right or left.
 To take heart, to gain confidence or courage; to be encouraged.
 To take heed, to be careful or cautious. “Take heed what doom against yourself you give.” --Dryden.
 To take heed to, to attend with care, as, take heed to thy ways.
 To take hold of, to seize; to fix on.
 To take horse, to mount and ride a horse.
 To take in. (a) To inclose; to fence. (b) To encompass or embrace; to comprise; to comprehend. (c) To draw into a smaller compass; to contract; to brail or furl; as, to take in sail. (d) To cheat; to circumvent; to gull; to deceive. [Colloq.] (e) To admit; to receive; as, a leaky vessel will take in water. (f) To win by conquest. [Obs.]
 For now Troy's broad-wayed town
 He shall take in.   --Chapman.
 (g) To receive into the mind or understanding. “Some bright genius can take in a long train of propositions.” --I. Watts. (h) To receive regularly, as a periodical work or newspaper; to take. [Eng.]
 To take in hand. See under Hand.
 To take in vain, to employ or utter as in an oath. “Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.” --Ex. xx. 7.
 To take issue. See under Issue.
 To take leave. See Leave, n., 2.
 To take a newspaper, magazine, or the like, to receive it regularly, as on paying the price of subscription.
 To take notice, to observe, or to observe with particular attention.
 To take notice of. See under Notice.
 To take oath, to swear with solemnity, or in a judicial manner.
 To take on, to assume; to take upon one's self; as, to take on a character or responsibility.
 To take one's own course, to act one's pleasure; to pursue the measures of one's own choice.
 To take order for. See under Order.
 To take order with, to check; to hinder; to repress. [Obs.] --Bacon.
 To take orders. (a) To receive directions or commands. (b) Eccl. To enter some grade of the ministry. See Order, n., 10.
 To take out. (a) To remove from within a place; to separate; to deduct. (b) To draw out; to remove; to clear or cleanse from; as, to take out a stain or spot from cloth. (c) To produce for one's self; as, to take out a patent.  (d) To put an end to; as, to take the conceit out of a man. (e) To escort; as, to take out to dinner.
 To take over, to undertake; to take the management of. [Eng.] --Cross (Life of G. Eliot).
 To take part, to share; as, they take part in our rejoicing.
 To take part with, to unite with; to join with.
 To take place, root, sides, stock, etc. See under Place, Root, Side, etc.
 To take the air. (a) Falconry To seek to escape by trying to rise higher than the falcon; -- said of a bird. (b) See under Air.
 To take the field. Mil. See under Field.
 To take thought, to be concerned or anxious; to be solicitous. --Matt. vi. 25, 27.
 To take to heart. See under Heart.
 To take to task, to reprove; to censure.
 To take up. (a) To lift; to raise. --Hood. (b) To buy or borrow; as, to take up goods to a large amount; to take up money at the bank. (c) To begin; as, to take up a lamentation. --Ezek. xix. 1. (d) To gather together; to bind up; to fasten or to replace; as, to take up raveled stitches; specifically Surg., to fasten with a ligature. (e) To engross; to employ; to occupy or fill; as, to take up the time; to take up a great deal of room. (f) To take permanently. “Arnobius asserts that men of the finest parts . . . took up their rest in the Christian religion.” --Addison. (g) To seize; to catch; to arrest; as, to take up a thief; to take up vagabonds. (h) To admit; to believe; to receive. [Obs.]
    The ancients took up experiments upon credit.   --Bacon.
 (i) To answer by reproof; to reprimand; to berate.
    One of his relations took him up roundly.   --L'Estrange.
 (k) To begin where another left off; to keep up in continuous succession; to take up (a topic, an activity).
 Soon as the evening shades prevail,
 The moon takes up the wondrous tale.   --Addison.
 (l) To assume; to adopt as one's own; to carry on or manage; as, to take up the quarrels of our neighbors; to take up current opinions. “They take up our old trade of conquering.” --Dryden. (m) To comprise; to include. “The noble poem of Palemon and Arcite . . . takes up seven years.” --Dryden. (n) To receive, accept, or adopt for the purpose of assisting; to espouse the cause of; to favor. --Ps. xxvii. 10. (o) To collect; to exact, as a tax; to levy; as, to take up a contribution. “Take up commodities upon our bills.” --Shak. (p) To pay and receive; as, to take up a note at the bank. (q) Mach. To remove, as by an adjustment of parts; as, to take up lost motion, as in a bearing; also, to make tight, as by winding, or drawing; as, to take up slack thread in sewing. (r) To make up; to compose; to settle; as, to take up a quarrel. [Obs.] --Shak. -- (s) To accept from someone, as a wager or a challenge; as, J. took M. up on his challenge.
 To take up arms. Same as To take arms, above.
 To take upon one's self. (a) To assume; to undertake; as, he takes upon himself to assert that the fact is capable of proof. (b) To appropriate to one's self; to allow to be imputed to, or inflicted upon, one's self; as, to take upon one's self a punishment.
 To take up the gauntlet. See under Gauntlet.


 field n.
 1. Cleared land; land suitable for tillage or pasture; cultivated ground; the open country.
 2. A piece of land of considerable size; esp., a piece inclosed for tillage or pasture.
    Fields which promise corn and wine.   --Byron.
 3. A place where a battle is fought; also, the battle itself.
    In this glorious and well-foughten field.   --Shak.
    What though the field be lost?   --Milton.
 4. An open space; an extent; an expanse.  Esp.: (a) Any blank space or ground on which figures are drawn or projected. (b) The space covered by an optical instrument at one view; as, wide-field binoculars.
    Without covering, save yon field of stars.   --Shak.
    Ask of yonder argent fields above.   --Pope.
 5. Her. The whole surface of an escutcheon; also, so much of it is shown unconcealed by the different bearings upon it. See Illust. of Fess, where the field is represented as gules (red), while the fess is argent (silver).
 6. An unresticted or favorable opportunity for action, operation, or achievement; province; room.
    Afforded a clear field for moral experiments.   --Macaulay.
 8. Specifically: Baseball That part of the grounds reserved for the players which is outside of the diamond; -- called also outfield.
 11. A collective term for all the competitors in any outdoor contest or trial, or for all except the favorites in the betting.
 Note: ☞ Field is often used adjectively in the sense of belonging to, or used in, the fields; especially with reference to the operations and equipments of an army during a campaign away from permanent camps and fortifications. In most cases such use of the word is sufficiently clear; as, field battery; field fortification; field gun; field hospital, etc.  A field geologist, naturalist, etc., is one who makes investigations or collections out of doors.  A survey uses a field book for recording field notes, i.e., measurment, observations, etc., made in field work (outdoor operations). A farmer or planter employs field hands, and may use a field roller or a field derrick. Field sports are hunting, fishing, athletic games, etc.
 Coal field Geol. See under Coal.
 Field artillery, light ordnance mounted on wheels, for the use of a marching army.
 Field basil Bot., a plant of the Mint family (Calamintha Acinos); -- called also basil thyme.
 Field colors Mil., small flags for marking out the positions for squadrons and battalions; camp colors.
 Field cricket Zool., a large European cricket (Gryllus campestric), remarkable for its loud notes.
 Field day. (a) A day in the fields. (b) Mil. A day when troops are taken into the field for instruction in evolutions. --Farrow. (c) A day of unusual exertion or display; a gala day.
 Field driver, in New England, an officer charged with the driving of stray cattle to the pound.
 Field duck Zool., the little bustard (Otis tetrax), found in Southern Europe.
 Field glass. Optics (a) A binocular telescope of compact form; a lorgnette; a race glass. (b) A small achromatic telescope, from 20 to 24 inches long, and having 3 to 6 draws. (c) See Field lens.
 Field lark. Zool. (a) The skylark. (b) The tree pipit.
 Field lens Optics, that one of the two lenses forming the eyepiece of an astronomical telescope or compound microscope which is nearer the object glass; -- called also field glass.
 Field madder Bot., a plant (Sherardia arvensis) used in dyeing.
 Field marshal Mil., the highest military rank conferred in the British and other European armies.
 Field officer Mil., an officer above the rank of captain and below that of general.
 Field officer's court U.S.Army, a court-martial consisting of one field officer empowered to try all cases, in time of war, subject to jurisdiction of garrison and regimental courts. --Farrow.
 Field plover Zool., the black-bellied plover (Charadrius squatarola); also sometimes applied to the Bartramian sandpiper (Bartramia longicauda).
 Field spaniel Zool., a small spaniel used in hunting small game.
 Field sparrow. Zool. (a) A small American sparrow (Spizella pusilla). (b) The hedge sparrow. [Eng.]
 Field staff Mil., a staff formerly used by gunners to hold a lighted match for discharging a gun.
 Field vole Zool., the European meadow mouse.
 Field of ice, a large body of floating ice; a pack.
 Field, or Field of view, in a telescope or microscope, the entire space within which objects are seen.
 Field magnet. see under Magnet.
 Magnetic field. See Magnetic.
 To back the field, or To bet on the field. See under Back, v. t.
 To keep the field. (a) Mil. To continue a campaign. (b) To maintain one's ground against all comers.
 To lay against the field or To back against the field, to bet on (a horse, etc.) against all comers.
 To take the field Mil., to enter upon a campaign.

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