Take down or takedown?
take down is a verb meaning “To remove something from a wall or similar vertical surface to which it is fixed”; takedown is a noun meaning “A taking down: the arrest of a suspect by a police officer”. Use take down as a verb and takedown as a noun. take down is written as two words and takedown as one word; they are used differently.
What is the difference between take down and takedown?
| take down | takedown | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | verb | noun |
| Meaning | To remove something from a wall or similar vertical surface to which it is fixed To remove something from a hanging position | A taking down: an act of bringing one's opponent to the ground by grabbing one or both legs and applying a rearward bending moment Enforced removal of material from a website, etc |
| Example | He took down the picture and replaced it with the framed photograph | Takedown (grappling) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia |
| Forms | none | takedowns |
| Pronunciation | not recorded | not recorded |
| In writing | not counted (the list counts single words) | 1.1 times per million words |
Sources: take down and takedown in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of take down and takedown
take down
- 1
To remove something from a wall or similar vertical surface to which it is fixed
He took down the picture and replaced it with the framed photograph
- 2
To remove something from a hanging position
We need to take down the curtains to be cleaned
- 3
To remove something from a website
We must take this fake news item down today
- 4
To write down as a note, especially to record something spoken
If you have a pen, you can take down my phone number
- 5
To remove a temporary structure such as scaffolding
When everything else is packed, we can take down the tent
- 6
To lower an item of clothing without removing it
The doctor asked me to take down my trousers
- 7
To arrest someone or to place them in detention
You have been found guilty. Take the prisoner down
- 8
To swallow
I took down the medicine and soon felt better
takedown
- 1
slangA taking down: the arrest of a suspect by a police officer
- 2
A taking down: an act of bringing one's opponent to the ground by grabbing one or both legs and applying a rearward bending moment
Takedown (grappling) on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
- 3
Enforced removal of material from a website, etc
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, take down or takedown?
take down is a phrase, which the list of single words does not count; takedown 1.1 times per million words.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).