take on

verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"take-on" is a 6-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“take on” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
7
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To acquire, bring in, or introduce.

Corpus desk

Index EN-take-on · take on · English

take on · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "T" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for take on
PropertyValue
Headwordtake on
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
Letters7
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “take on” in English

take onranks outside the top 100,000 English headwords, in the long tail of specialist, archaic, or seldom-used vocabulary, exactly the territory where a reader stops mid-sentence to double-check spelling.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

take on is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as averb. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 9 senses are on record.

take on doesn't appear in our generated misspelling index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. We don't track a confusable pairing for this entry, a sign it's visually distinctive enough not to be mixed up with another word.

Our source data has no etymology on file for this entry, so its spelling is easiest explained by how it's pronounced rather than where it came from. The correct English form is take on, spelled T-A-K-E- -O-N.

Definition

  1. 1
    To acquire, bring in, or introduce.
  2. 2
    To acquire, bring in, or introduce.
  3. 3
    To begin to have or exhibit.
  4. 4
    To assume or take responsibility for.
  5. 5
    To attempt to fight, compete with, or engage with.
  6. 6
    To (attempt to) dribble round (an opposition player).
  7. 7
    To catch on, do well; to become popular.
  8. 8
    To grieve or be concerned (about something or someone).
  9. 9
    To enlist into military service.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how take on appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. The ship took on cargo in Norfolk yesterday.
  2. The first of 14 Class 68s to be taken on by Chiltern Railways (68020) has been reliveried in the company's new dark blue livery.

This word in other languages

encargarse(Español)einbringen(Deutsch)aparecer(Português)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "take on"?
"take on" is spelled T-A-K-E- -O-N.
What does "take on" mean?
As a verb, "take on" means: To acquire, bring in, or introduce.
What language does "take on" come from?
"take on" is a English word. PlainSpell's reference spans five languages -- English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German -- with definitions, pronunciations, and spelling data for each.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list