betake

[bih-teyk]

verb (used with object), be·took, be·tak·en, be·tak·ing.

to cause to go (usually used reflexively): She betook herself to town.

Archaic. to resort or have recourse to.

Nearby words

Origin of betake

First recorded in 1175–1225, betake is from the Middle English word bitaken. See be-, take

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for betake

Deny him any playground but a hole-and-corner court, and you'll find that he'll betake himself to hole-and-corner games in it.
Mr. Punch's History of Modern England Vol. II (of IV),--1857-1874|Charles L. Graves
Hill stations have become very accessible by rail, and to these Europeans betake themselves in great numbers for the hot months.
Life and Work in Benares and Kumaon, 1839-1877|James Kennedy
It may have been this episode which gave him a temporary inclination to betake himself to a monastic life: but this did not last.
Ten Tudor Statesmen|Arthur D. Innes
To men and women who betake themselves to active life, two things befall.
The Form of Perfect Living and Other Prose Treatises|Richard Rolle of Hampole

Even now was it coming towards them, so it were well that they should betake themselves to some safer spot.
Celtic Tales|Louey Chisholm

British Dictionary definitions for betake

betake

verb -takes, -taking, -took or -taken (tr)

betake oneself to go; move

archaic to apply (oneself) to

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for betake

betake

c.1200, from be- + take. Related: Betook; betaken.