Take in Different Languages
Discover 'Take' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'take' is a small but powerful part of many languages, including English. It can signify everything from picking up a physical object to accepting a challenge or responsibility. Its cultural importance is hard to overstate, as it's a word we use daily in various contexts.
For those interested in language and culture, knowing the translation of 'take' in different languages can be fascinating and enlightening. For example, in Spanish, 'take' is 'tomar,' while in French, it's 'prendre.' In German, 'take' is 'nehmen,' and in Japanese, it's 'とる' (toru).
Did you know that the English word 'take' comes from the Old Norse 'taka,' brought to England by Viking invaders? Or that in some cultures, the concept of 'take' is expressed through verbs that mean 'to seize' or 'to capture' instead?
Join us as we explore the many translations of 'take' and delve into the fascinating cultural and historical contexts behind them.
Take
Take in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | neem | ||
| The word "neem" in Afrikaans can also refer to a type of tree, or a type of bird. | |||
| Amharic | ውሰድ | ||
| "ውሰድ" also means "to eat" in Amharic and "to steal" in Tigrinya. | |||
| Hausa | dauka | ||
| "Dauka" in Hausa also refers to receiving something while standing from a sitting position. | |||
| Igbo | nara | ||
| In Igbo, 'nara' means 'take' in general but has other meanings such as 'fetch' if the object is water, 'receive' if the object is payment, and 'buy' if the object is an item. | |||
| Malagasy | mandray | ||
| "Mandray" is also used in the sense of "to have" or "to possess". | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | tengani | ||
| 'Tengani' can also mean "to carry" in Nyanja. | |||
| Shona | tora | ||
| The Shona word 'tora' can also mean 'to lift up' or 'to carry' something. | |||
| Somali | qaado | ||
| The Somali verb 'qaado' can also mean 'to receive' or 'to get' something. | |||
| Sesotho | nka | ||
| The Sesotho word "nka" can also mean "get" or "fetch". | |||
| Swahili | chukua | ||
| "Chukua" can also mean "to choose," "to select" or "to pick up." | |||
| Xhosa | thabatha | ||
| The word "thabatha" can also mean "receive" or "hold" in Xhosa. | |||
| Yoruba | gba | ||
| The Yoruba verb "gba" can also mean "accept" or "receive". | |||
| Zulu | thatha | ||
| "Thatha" can also mean to receive or inherit, and "thathayo" to be received or inherited. | |||
| Bambara | ka ta | ||
| Ewe | tsɔ | ||
| Kinyarwanda | fata | ||
| Lingala | zwa | ||
| Luganda | twaala | ||
| Sepedi | tšea | ||
| Twi (Akan) | fam | ||
Take in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | يأخذ | ||
| The word يأخذ (“take”) can also mean “to seize” in Arabic. | |||
| Hebrew | לקחת | ||
| The Hebrew word "לקחת" (lakat) can also mean "to receive, to marry, to take away, to take hold of". | |||
| Pashto | واخله | ||
| In Pashto, "واخله" can also refer to receiving or acquiring something, as opposed to forcefully taking it. | |||
| Arabic | يأخذ | ||
| The word يأخذ (“take”) can also mean “to seize” in Arabic. | |||
Take in Western European Languages
| Albanian | marr | ||
| The Albanian word "marr" not only means "to take," but also "to marry" and "to understand." | |||
| Basque | hartu | ||
| The word "hartu" also has the alternate meaning of "to begin." | |||
| Catalan | prendre | ||
| In Catalan, "prendre" can also mean "to seize", "to capture", or "to occupy". | |||
| Croatian | uzeti | ||
| The Croatian word "uzeti" (take) derives from the Proto-Slavic word "jęti", which also means "to catch" or "to seize". | |||
| Danish | tage | ||
| The Danish word "tage" also means "to accept" or "to receive". | |||
| Dutch | nemen | ||
| In Dutch, the verb "nemen" can also mean "to use" or "to apply," as in "deze medicijnen moet je tweemaal per dag nemen" (you should take these medications twice a day). | |||
| English | take | ||
| Derived from Middle English taken, from Old English tacan, meaning "to seize, capture, or receive something." | |||
| French | prendre | ||
| In French, the verb «prendre» also means «to catch» or «to understand». | |||
| Frisian | nimme | ||
| The Frisian word nimme, meaning "take," shares its root with the verb "name," suggesting the concept of taking something by giving it a name or marking it as one's own. | |||
| Galician | tomar | ||
| "Tomar" also means to drink in Spanish and Galician | |||
| German | nehmen | ||
| Nehmen is cognate to the English | |||
| Icelandic | taka | ||
| The Icelandic word "taka" can also refer to a woman who is taking care of a child that is not her own. | |||
| Irish | ghlacadh | ||
| ‘Ghlacadh’ comes from the Old Irish word ‘gabáil’, and also means ‘to accept, receive, or hold’ | |||
| Italian | prendere | ||
| "Prendere" can also mean "to understand" in Italian, deriving from the Latin "prehendere" meaning "to grasp". | |||
| Luxembourgish | huelen | ||
| In Luxembourgish, the word "huelen" can also mean "to hold" or "to fetch". | |||
| Maltese | ħu | ||
| The word 'ħu' also means 'receive' and is related to the Arabic word 'أخذ' meaning 'to take'. | |||
| Norwegian | ta | ||
| In addition to meaning 'take', 'ta' can also mean 'to receive, get, or obtain', 'to grasp, hold, or seize', and 'to do, perform, or carry out'. | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | toma | ||
| The word "toma" also means "surprise" or "scolding" in informal Brazilian Portuguese. | |||
| Scots Gaelic | gabh | ||
| The word 'gabh' in Scots Gaelic can also mean 'receive' or 'accept'. | |||
| Spanish | tomar | ||
| Tomar derives from Latin "tollere" (to lift) or "capere" (to seize), and in Spanish also means "drink" or "have (medicines)" | |||
| Swedish | ta | ||
| The Swedish word "ta" (take) also means "to pick up." | |||
| Welsh | cymryd | ||
| The Welsh word "cymryd" also means "to understand" or "to receive." | |||
Take in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | вазьмі | ||
| The word "вазьмі" can also be used as a euphemism for "kill" | |||
| Bosnian | uzmi | ||
| Uzmi derives from Old Church Slavonic | |||
| Bulgarian | предприеме | ||
| The Bulgarian word "предприеме" can also mean "to undertake" or "to initiate" in English. | |||
| Czech | vzít | ||
| The verb "vzít" can also mean "to capture" or "to seize" in Czech. | |||
| Estonian | võtma | ||
| In Estonian, the verb 'võtma' can also refer to 'accepting' or 'understanding'. | |||
| Finnish | ota | ||
| The word has Indo-European roots from the same source as the English 'get' or the German 'kriegen' | |||
| Hungarian | vesz | ||
| The verb "vesz" can also mean "buy" in Hungarian. | |||
| Latvian | ņemt | ||
| The word "ņemt" originally meant to seize or capture, and is related to the Old Prussian word "nimti". | |||
| Lithuanian | imk | ||
| The word "imk" in Lithuanian has the same root as the Latvian word "imt", which means "to take" or "to accept". | |||
| Macedonian | земи | ||
| The Macedonian verb "земи" can mean "to perceive" or "to understand" in addition to "to take." | |||
| Polish | brać | ||
| "Brać" comes from the Proto-Slavic word *bьrati, which also meant "to gather" or "to collect." | |||
| Romanian | lua | ||
| The word "lua" can also refer to a magical incantation or a ghost that guards the entrance of caves or other places. | |||
| Russian | взять | ||
| The verb "взять" can also mean "to capture" or "to arrest" in Russian. | |||
| Serbian | узми | ||
| The verb "узми" can also mean "to receive" or "to accept". | |||
| Slovak | vziať | ||
| The Slovak word "vziať" has origins in the Proto-Slavic word *vьzati meaning "to bind" or "to tie". | |||
| Slovenian | vzemite | ||
| The word "vzemite" can also be translated as "accept" or "receive" in some contexts. | |||
| Ukrainian | приймати | ||
| The Ukrainian word "приймати" ("take") is derived from the Proto-Slavic root *prijati, meaning "to accept" or "to receive". | |||
Take in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | গ্রহণ করা | ||
| The Bengali word 'গ্রহণ করা,' originally meaning 'to receive,' expanded in usage to include the more abstract concept of undertaking an action. | |||
| Gujarati | લો | ||
| The word "લો" in Gujarati can also mean "see" or "behold". | |||
| Hindi | लेना | ||
| The word "लेना" can also mean "to receive" or "to accept" in Hindi. | |||
| Kannada | ತೆಗೆದುಕೊಳ್ಳಿ | ||
| The word ತೆಗೆದುಕೊಳ್ಳಿ, which means "to take" in Kannada, can also mean "to receive" or "to accept". | |||
| Malayalam | എടുക്കുക | ||
| எடு (eḍu) in Tamil means both to pick up and to carry | |||
| Marathi | घ्या | ||
| "घ्या" (ghyā) in Marathi, meaning "to take", also carries the sense of "to receive" or "to accept" something given or offered. | |||
| Nepali | लिनुहोस् | ||
| In Nepali, the verb 'लिनुहोस्' ('linuhos') is also used as a polite form of 'take' in formal or respectful contexts. | |||
| Punjabi | ਲੈ | ||
| The Punjabi word ਲੈ (lai) can be translated as "take" as well as "bring." | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | ගන්න | ||
| The Sinhala word ගන්න (ganna), meaning "take", also has the alternate meaning of "receive" or "accept". | |||
| Tamil | எடுத்துக்கொள்ளுங்கள் | ||
| Telugu | తీసుకోవడం | ||
| Urdu | لے لو | ||
| The word "لے لو" can also mean "to accept" or "to receive" in Urdu. | |||
Take in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 采取 | ||
| "采取" is most often used in Chinese to mean "to adopt (a certain viewpoint)". | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 採取 | ||
| The character 採取, when used in a medical or pharmaceutical context, can also have the meaning of "collect" or "gather". | |||
| Japanese | 取る | ||
| The verb "取る" (toru) has a wide range of meanings, including "to receive," "to get," "to catch," "to seize," and "to remove." | |||
| Korean | 취하다 | ||
| The word "취하다" can also mean "to get drunk" or "to be intoxicated". | |||
| Mongolian | авах | ||
| The verb "авах" derives from the Mongolian word "ав," meaning "hand" or "hold." | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | ယူ | ||
| The Myanmar word 'ယူ' not only means 'to take', but also 'to accept, to receive', and even 'to carry out'. | |||
Take in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | mengambil | ||
| The word "mengambil" can also mean "to fetch" or "to get." | |||
| Javanese | njupuk | ||
| In Javanese, the word "njupuk" can also mean "to steal" or "to borrow" depending on the context. | |||
| Khmer | យក | ||
| យក is sometimes used to describe the act of picking up or carrying something rather than taking it away. | |||
| Lao | ເອົາ | ||
| The word "ເອົາ" could also be used as a placeholder when someone can't remember the name of something. | |||
| Malay | ambil | ||
| In Malay, 'ambil' can also mean 'to choose' or 'to accept'. | |||
| Thai | ใช้เวลา | ||
| The word "ใช้เวลา" can also mean "to spend time" or "to take time." | |||
| Vietnamese | lấy | ||
| The Vietnamese word "lấy" can also mean "to marry" or "to adopt". | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kunin | ||
Take in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | götür | ||
| In Azerbaijani, 'götürmek' can also mean 'to lead' or 'to kidnap', depending on the context. | |||
| Kazakh | алу | ||
| The verb “алу” comes from the Old Turkic “al-” which can also mean “hold, seize” in Kazakh and Kyrgyz languages and “to carry in the hand” and “to steal” in the Chuvash language. | |||
| Kyrgyz | алуу | ||
| In Kyrgyz, "алуу" not only means "to take" but also "to steal" or "to capture". | |||
| Tajik | гирифтан | ||
| The word "гирифтан" can also mean "to understand" or "to comprehend" in Tajik. | |||
| Turkmen | al | ||
| Uzbek | olish | ||
| The Uzbek word "olish" comes from the Turkic root "al-", meaning "to get" or "to receive." | |||
| Uyghur | ئېلىش | ||
Take in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | lawe | ||
| The word 'lawe' can also mean 'to receive', 'to accept', or 'to get' in Hawaiian. | |||
| Maori | tango | ||
| In Maori, 'tango' can also refer to a group of people, or a journey. | |||
| Samoan | ave | ||
| The verb ''ave'' in Samoan is cognate with the word ''have'' in English, and also means ''to be there, available, present''. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | kunin | ||
| The Tagalog word "kunin" also means "to obtain" or "to acquire". | |||
Take in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | umaña | ||
| Guarani | japyhy | ||
Take in International Languages
| Esperanto | prenu | ||
| 'Preni' comes from the Proto-Indo-European root *per- 'to convey, obtain,' also found in Greek, Latin, and other languages. | |||
| Latin | accipere | ||
| Accipere, meaning "to take," also implies "to receive" or "to welcome" in Latin. | |||
Take in Others Languages
| Greek | παίρνω | ||
| The Greek verb "παίρνω" (take) is derived from the ancient Greek word "πάρειμι" (peīmi), meaning "to go through, to pass by, to approach". | |||
| Hmong | noj | ||
| The word "noj" in Hmong can also mean "to pick up" or "to carry". | |||
| Kurdish | wergirtin | ||
| The word "wergirtin" in Kurdish also means "to receive" or "to accept". | |||
| Turkish | almak | ||
| In Ottoman Turkish and other Turkic languages, "almak" can also mean "to buy" or "to receive" something. | |||
| Xhosa | thabatha | ||
| The word "thabatha" can also mean "receive" or "hold" in Xhosa. | |||
| Yiddish | נעמען | ||
| The Yiddish word "נעמען" (nemen) shares its etymology with the English word "name" and the German word "nehmen", all derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *nem- meaning "to take, seize, distribute". | |||
| Zulu | thatha | ||
| "Thatha" can also mean to receive or inherit, and "thathayo" to be received or inherited. | |||
| Assamese | লোৱা | ||
| Aymara | umaña | ||
| Bhojpuri | लेना | ||
| Dhivehi | ނެގުން | ||
| Dogri | लैओ | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kunin | ||
| Guarani | japyhy | ||
| Ilocano | alaen | ||
| Krio | tek | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | بردن | ||
| Maithili | लिअ | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯂꯧꯕ | ||
| Mizo | la | ||
| Oromo | fudhadhu | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ନିଅ | ||
| Quechua | hapiy | ||
| Sanskrit | गृह्णातु | ||
| Tatar | алыгыз | ||
| Tigrinya | ውሰድ | ||
| Tsonga | teka | ||