[take things easy] See: TAKE IT EASY(2).
[take time off] See: TIME OFF; Compare: DAY OFF.
[take time out] See: TIME OUT.
[take to] <v.> 1. To go to or into; get yourself quickly to. Often used in the imperative. * /Take to the hills! The bandits are coming!/ * /We took to the woods during the day so no one would see us./ * /Take to the boats! The ship is sinking./ * /We stopped at a hotel for the night but took to the road again the next morning./ 2. To begin the work or job of; make a habit of. * /He took to repairing watches in his spare time./ * /She took to knitting when she got older./ * /Grandfather took to smoking cigars when he was young and he still smokes them./ * /Uncle Willie took to drink while he was a sailor./ * /The cat took to jumping on the table at mealtime./ 3. To learn easily; do well at. * /Father tried to teach John to swim, but John didn't take to it./ * /Mary takes to mathematics like a duck takes to water./ 4. To like at first meeting; be pleased by or attracted to; accept quickly. * /Our dog always takes to children quickly./ * /Mary didn't take kindly to the new rule that her mother made of being home at 6 o'clock./
[take to heart] also [lay to heart] <v. phr.> To be seriously affected by; to feel deeply. * /He took his brother's death very much to heart./ * /He took his friend's advice to heart./
[take to one's heels] also [show a clean pair of heels] <v. phr.> To begin to run or run away. * /When he heard the police coming, the thief took to his heels./
[take to task] <v. phr.> To reprove or scold for a fault or error. * /He took his wife to task for her foolish wastefulness./ * /The principal took Bill to task for breaking the window./
[take to the cleaners] <v. phr.>, <slang> 1. To win all the money another person has (as in poker). * /Watch out if you play poker with Joe; he'll take you to the cleaners./ 2. To cheat a person out of his money and possessions by means of a crooked business transaction or other means of dishonest conduct. * /I'll never forgive myself for becoming associated with Joe; he took me to the cleaners./
[take to the woods] <v. phr.>, <informal> To run away and hide. * /When John saw the girls coming, he took to the woods./ * /Bob took to the woods so he would not have to mow the grass./ Compare: HEAD FOR THE HILLS.
[take turns] <v. phr.> To do something one after another instead of doing it all at the same time. * /In class we should not talk all at the same time; we should take turns./ * /Jean and Beth took turns on the swing./ * /The two boys took turns at digging the hole./ * /The three men took turns driving so one would not be too tired./
[take under one's wing] See: UNDER ONE'S WING.
[take up] <v.> 1. To remove by taking in. * /Use a blotter to take up the spilled ink./ * /When the vacuum cleaner bag is full, it will not take up dirt from the rug./ 2. To fill or to occupy. * /All his evenings were taken up with study./ * /The oceans take up the greater part of the earth's surface./ * /The mayor has taken up residence on State Street./ 3. To gather together; collect. * /We are taking up a collection to buy flowers for John because he is in the hospital./ 4. To take away. * /John had his driver's license taken up for speeding./ 5a. To begin; start. * /The teacher took up the lesson where she left off yesterday./ 5b. To begin to do or learn; go into as a job or hobby. * /He recently took up gardening./ * /He took up the carpenter's trade as a boy./ Compare: GO INTO(3), GO IN FOR, TAKE TO. 6. To pull and make tight or shorter; shorten. * /The tailor took up the legs of the trousers./ * /Take up the slack on the rope!/ Compare: TAKE IN(3). 7. To take or accept something that is offered. * /The boss offered me a $5 raise and I took him up./ * /I took John up on his bet./ Compare: JUMP AT.
[take up arms] <v. phr.>, <literary>. To get ready to fight; fight or make war. * /The people were quick to take up arms to defend their freedom./ * /The President called on people to take up arms against poverty./ Contrast: LAY DOWN ONE'S ARMS.
[take upon oneself] See: TAKE ON ONESELF.
[take up the cudgels for] <v. phr.>, <literary> To come to the defense of; to support or fight for. * /He was the first to take up the cudgels for his friend./ Compare: STAND UP FOR.
[take up with] <v.> To begin to go around with (someone); see a lot of. * /Frank has taken up with Lucy lately./
[take with a grain of salt] also [take with a pinch of salt] <v. phr.> To accept or believe only in part; not accept too much. * /A man who says he is not a candidate for President should usually have his statement taken with a grain of salt./ * /We took Uncle George's stories of the war with a pinch of salt./
[taking pictures] <v. phr.>, <slang>, <citizen's band radio jargon> To use a radar-operated speed indicator in order to enforce the 55 MPH speed limit. * /The Smokeys are taking pictures!/
[tale] See: TELL TALES OUT OF SCHOOL.
[talent scout] <n. phr.> A person employed by a large organization to seek out promising and gifted individuals. * /Gordon has been working as a talent scout for a television program./ Compare: HEAD HUNTING(2).
[talent show] <n.> An entertainment in which new entertainers try to win a prize. * /Mary won the talent show by her dancing./ * /The people liked Bill's singing in the talent show./
[talk] See: DOUBLE-TALK, PEP TALK, SALES TALK, SWEET TALK.
[talk a blue streak] <v. phr.>, <informal> To talk on and on, usually very fast. * /Sue is a nice girl but after one drink she talks a blue streak and won't stop./
[talk back] also [answer back] <v.> <informal> To answer rudely; reply in a disrespectful way; be fresh. * /When the teacher told the boy to sit down, he talked back to her and said she couldn't make him./ * /Mary talked back when her mother told her to stop watching television; she said, "I don't have to if I don't want to."/ * /Russell was going somewhere with some bad boys, when his father told him it was wrong, Russell answered him back, "Mind your own business."/
[talk big] <v.>, <informal> To talk boastfully; brag. * /He talks big about his pitching, but he hasn't won a game./
[talk down] <v.> 1. To make (someone) silent by talking louder or longer. * /Sue tried to give her ideas, but the other girls talked her down./ Compare: SHOUT DOWN(2). To use words or ideas that are too easy. * /The speaker talked down to the students, and they were bored./
[talking book] <n.> A book recorded by voice on phonograph records for blind people. * /Billy, who was blind, learned history from a talking book./
[talking point] <n.> Something good about a person or thing that can be talked about in selling it. * /The streamlined shape of the car was one of its talking points./ * /John tried to get Mary to date Bill. One of his talking points was that Bill was captain of the football team./
[talk in circles] <v. phr.> To waste time by saying words that don't mean very much. * /After three hours at the negotiating table, the parties decided to call it quits because they realized that they had been talking in circles./
[talk into] <v.> 1. To get (someone) to agree to; make (someone) decide on (doing something) by talking; persuade to. - Used with a verbal noun. * /Bob talked us into walking home with him./ Compare: TALK OVER(2). Contrast TALK OUT OF. 2. To cause to be in or to get into by talking. * /You talked us into this mess. Now get us out!/ * /Mr. Jones lost the customer in his store by arguing with him./ * /"You'll talk us into the poor house yet!" said Mrs. Jones./ Contrast: TALK OUT OF.
[talk of the town] <n. phr.> Something that has become so popular or prominent that everyone is discussing it. * /Even after three decades, Picasso's famous metal statue is still the talk of the town in Chicago./
[talk out] <v.> To talk all about and leave nothing out; discuss until everything is agreed on; settle. * /After their quarrel, Jill and John talked things out and reached full agreement./
[talk out of] <v.> 1. To persuade not to; make agree or decide not to. - Used with a verbal noun. * /Mary's mother talked her out of quitting school./ Contrast: TALK INTO. 2. To allow to go or get out by talking; let escape by talking. * /Johnny is good at talking his way out of trouble./ Contrast: TALK INTO.
[talk out of turn] See: SPEAK OUT OF TURN.
[talk over] <v.> 1. To talk together about; try to agree about or decide by talking; discuss. * /Tom talked his plan over with his father before he bought the car./ * /The boys settled their argument by talking it over./ 2. To persuade; make agree or willing; talk and change the mind of. * /Fred is trying to talk Bill over to our side./ Compare: TALK INTO.
[talk rot] <v. phr.> To say silly things; talk nonsense. * /He's talking rot when he says that our company is almost bankrupt./
[talk shop] <v. phr.>, <informal> To talk about things in your work or trade. * /Two chemists were talking shop, and I hardly understood a word they said./
[talk through one's hat] <v. phr.>, <informal> To say something without knowing or understanding the facts; talk foolishly or ignorantly. * /John said that the earth is nearer the sun in summer, but the teacher said he was talking through his hat./
[talk turkey] <v. phr.>, <informal> To talk about something in a really businesslike way; talk with the aim of getting things done. * /Charles said, "Now, let's talk turkey about the bus trip. The fact is, it will cost each student $1.50."/ * /The father always spoke gently to his son, but when the son broke the windshield of the car, the father talked turkey to him./
[talk up] <v.> 1. To speak in favor or support of. * /Let's talk up the game and get a big crowd./ 2. To speak plainly or clearly. * /The teacher asked the student to talk up./ Syn.: SPEAK UP. 3. <informal> To say what you want or think; say what someone may not like. * /Talk up if you want more pie./ * /George isn't afraid to talk up when he disagrees with the teacher./ Syn.: SPEAK UP. Compare: SPEAK OUT.
[tall order] See: LARGE ORDER.
[tall story] or [tale] <n. phr.> See: FISH STORY.
[tamper with] <v.> 1. To meddle with (something); handle ignorantly or foolishly. * /He tampered with the insides of his watch and ruined it./ 2. To secretly get someone to do or say wrong things, especially by giving him money, or by threatening to hurt him. * /A friend of the man being tried in court tampered with a witness./
[tank] See: THINK TANK.
[tan one's hide] <v. phr.>, <informal> To give a beating to; spank hard. * /Bob's father tanned his hide for staying out too late./
[tape] See: FRICTION TAPE, MASKING TAPE.
[taper down] <adj. phr.> To decrease; reduce. * /He has tapered down his drinking from three martinis to one beer a day./
[taper off] <v.> 1. To come to an end little by little; become smaller toward the end. * /The river tapers off here and becomes a brook./ 2. To stop a habit gradually; do something less and less often. * /Robert gave up smoking all at once instead of tapering off./ Contrast: COLD TURKEY.
[tar] See: BEAT THE --- OUT OF.