TOOK HOLD Synonyms: 18 Similar and Opposite Words

took hold

phrase

past tense of take hold

as in worked

to produce a desired effect It was clear in the students' essays that her lessons had taken hold.

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of took hold The long history of prejudice As religious studies scholar Michael Altman argues, the charge that Hindus worship false gods and idols took hold in American national culture nearly two centuries ago. — Arun Brahmbhatt, The Conversation, 21 Oct. 2026 A couple of the projects Oppenheim brought to Fielder reached the early planning stages, but nothing took hold. — Chris O'Falt, IndieWire, 19 Oct. 2026 The downtrend channel that took hold in December 2024 has come into secular support from the monthly cloud model, denoted by the shading on the chart. — Katie Stockton, CNBC, 19 Oct. 2026 Average tariff rates continued to fall the ensuing months, but made a reversal in August as the Section 301 duties took hold. — Kate Nishimura, Footwear News, 14 Oct. 2026 As the industrial age took hold, geometry continued to show force in the colonial infantries abroad and through isomorphic police squadrons that fit neatly into modernizing city blocks patrolled back home. — Sophie Landres, Artforum, 1 Oct. 2026 This new mood – a narrower, harsher definition of religious truth – had been brewing since the Reformation movement took hold in Britain around a hundred years earlier. — Literary Hub, 28 Sep. 2026 Geismer suggests that the market-forward liberalism that took hold during Bill Clinton’s Presidency can be traced to the suburbanization of the Democratic Party. — Daniel Immerwahr, New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2026 But as the retrenchment took hold, studies found that the English immersion approach did not improve academic outcomes. — Kate Sequeira, Los Angeles Times, 24 Sep. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for took hold

took effect

Phrase

The region faced a monthslong stretch of below-average rainfall before the restrictions took effect.

— Nick Sullivan, Charlotte Observer, 24 Oct. 2026
State Parks said the DMV mailed those notices before the increase took effect.

— Daniel Hunt, Sacbee.com, 23 Oct. 2026