English irregular verbs, past forms of Take: Take - Took - Taken

Meaning of Take

Example

to remove something, especially without permission

All her belongings have been taken by the thief.

to rent or hire (in a short time)

Jack has taken the flat for a month.

to photograph somebody/ something

He took a photograph of us. 

to wear a particular size in shoes or clothes

What size shoes do you take? 

to remove something/somebody from a place or a person

Can you take my phone while I close the door? 

to accept or receive something

I take your point, but I still don't think you should have gone. 

to go with somebody from one place to another, especially to guide or lead them

We’re taking the kids to the mall on Saturday. 

to use a form of transport, a road, a path, etc. to go to a place

Jennie took the 10.30 flight to Paris. 

to study a subject at school, college, etc.

I decided to take the IELTS course. 

Past forms of Take

Example

V0

Take

/teɪk/

My mom takes me to the zoo every Sunday. 

V2

Took

/tʊk/

My mom took me to the zoo yesterday. 

V3

Taken

/ˈteɪ.kən/

My mom has taken me to the zoo for two days. 

12 English tenses

I

He/She/It

We/You/They

Present simple tense

take

takes

taken

For example:

• I take the bus to work every morning. 
• She takes a walk in the park after dinner. 
• We take our dog for a walk in the evenings. 

Present continuous tense

am taking

is taking

are taking

For example:

• I am taking a shower right now. 
• She is taking a break from her studies at the moment. 
• We are taking a trip to the beach. 

Present perfect tense

have taken

has taken

have taken

For example:

• I have taken my medicine for three days. 
• She has taken several photography classes this year. 
• We have taken a lot of photos on our vacation so far. 

Present perfect continuous tense

have been taking

has been taking

have been taking

For example:

• I have been taking Spanish lessons all month. 
• She has been taking care of her sick grandmother all week. 
• We have been taking turns cooking dinner every evening. 

Past simple tense

took

took

took

For example:

• I took a long walk in the park yesterday. 
• She took the train to visit her friend last weekend.
• We took a vacation to Europe last summer. 

Past continuous tense

was taking

was taking

were taking

For example:

• I was taking a nap when you called yesterday.
• Yesterday, she was taking care of her sick child all night. 
• We were taking a walk in the park when it started raining. 

Past Perfect Tense

had taken

had taken

had taken

For example:

• I had taken my car to the mechanic before it broke down.
• She had taken all the necessary precautions before the storm hit. 
• We had taken a different route to avoid traffic, but we still arrived late.

Past perfect continuous tense

had been taking

had been taking

had been taking

For example:

• I had been taking care of my garden for hours before it started raining. 
• She had been taking a yoga class for several months before she injured her ankle.
• We had been taking turns watching the children when the parents were out for dinner. 

Simple future tense

will take

will take

will take

For example:

• I will take the train to the city tomorrow.
• She will take her driving test next week. 
• We will take a vacation to Paris next year. 

Future continuous tense

will be taking

will be taking

will be taking

For example:

• I will be taking a flight to Paris this time next week.
• She will be taking her final exams for her degree next month. 
• We will be taking a road trip across the country this summer. 

Future Perfect tense

will have taken

will have taken

will have taken

For example:

• By this time next year, I will have taken my driving test. 
• By the end of the month, she will have taken all her exams. 
• By the time we arrive, we will have taken a long flight. 

Future perfect continuous tense

will have been taking

will have been taking

will have been taking

For example:

• By the time you arrive, I will have been taking care of the garden for hours. 
• By next summer, she will have been taking ballet lessons for ten years.
• We will have been taking turns cleaning the house all week. 

Special structure

I

He/She/It

We/You/They

Conditional sentences

Conditional sentence type 2 - Main clause

would take

would take

would take

For example:

• If I had more time, I would take up painting as a hobby. 
• If she had the opportunity, she would take a trip around the world. 
• If we lived closer to the beach, we would take surfing lessons. 

Conditional sentence type 2 - Variation of the main clause

would be taking

would be taking

would be taking

For example:

• If I were on vacation, I would be taking a cooking class right now. 
• If she were not busy, she would be taking part in the charity event.
• If we saved money, we would be taking a cruise around the Caribbean. 

Conditional sentence type 3 - Main clause

would have taken

would have taken

would have taken

For example:

• If I had known about the traffic, I would have taken a different route.
• If she had arrived earlier, she would have taken the last available seat.
• If we had been more prepared, we would have taken advantage of the opportunity. 

Conditional sentence type 3 - Variation of the main clause

would have been taking

would have been taking

would have been taking

For example:

• If I had been feeling better, I would have been taking part in the marathon. 
• If she had been more focused, she would have been taking better notes during the lecture.
• If we had been aware of the deadline, we would have been taking action sooner. 

Hypothetical sentence

Hypothetical Sentence Expressing a Present Event

take

take

take

Hypothetical Sentence Expressing a Contrast with Reality in the Present

took

took

took

Hypothetical Sentence Expressing a Contrast with Reality in the Past

had taken

had taken

had taken

For example

• If I take a break now, I feel refreshed later. 
• If she took that job offer, she might have gained valuable experience.
• I wish I had taken that opportunity.

V0

V2

V3

Meaning

mistake /misˈteik/

mistook /misˈtʊk/

mistaken

/misˈteɪ.kən/

to be wrong about or to fail to recognize something or someone

For example:

• You can't mistake their house - it has a bright yellow front door. 
• I mistook your signature for someone else. 
• I have mistaken Jane three times since he has cut his hair.

overtake

overtook

/auveˈtuk/

overtaken

/əuvəˈteɪ.kən/

to go beyond something by being a greater amount or degree, or to come from behind and move in front of

For example:

• I accelerated to overtake the bus. 
• Payment by card  soon overtook cash as Britain’s most popular method of payment. 
• I have overtaken the car three times. 

undertake /andəˈteik/

undertook

/andeˈtuk/

undertaken

/andə'teɪ.kən/

to do or begin to do something, especially something that will take a long time or be difficult

For example:

• Students are required to undertake simple assignments. 
• I undertook to help him complete the project.
• The agency has undertaken the survey for two weeks.

Phrasal verbs with Take

Meaning

Example

Take aback

to surprise or shock someone so much that they do not know how to behave for a short time

Maria was taken aback by the surprise birthday party. 

Take off

to leave the ground and begins to fly

The plane took off 5 hours late. 

Take over 

to become more successful or powerful than something or someone else that is involved in the same type of activity

Try not to let negative thoughts take over. 

Take up

to start doing a particular job or activity

Smith has taken up the position of supervisor. 

Take after

to be similar to an older member of your family in appearance or character

Anna takes after her mother. 

Take aback - Take off - Take over - Take up- Take after

Exercise 1

Exercise 2

1. takes 
2. will take
3. are taking
4. took 
5. was taking

1. take off
2. took aback
3. took up
4. takes after
5. Take over