partake
Americanverb (used without object)
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partakes,
present (3rd person singular)
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partook,
past
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partaken,
past participle
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partaking
present participle
-
to take or have a part or share along with others; participate (usually followed byin ).
He won't partake in the victory celebration.
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to receive, take, or have a share or portion (usually followed byof ).
to partake of a meal.
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to have something of the nature or character (usually followed byof ).
feelings partaking of both joy and regret.
verb (used with object)
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partakes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
partook,
past
-
partaken,
past participle
-
partaking
present participle
verb
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(foll by in) to have a share; participate
to partake in the excitement
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(foll by of) to take or receive a portion, esp of food or drink
each partook of the food offered to him
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(foll by of) to suggest or have some of the quality (of)
music partaking of sadness
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archaic (tr) to share in
Usage
Partake of is sometimes wrongly used as if it were a synonym of eat or drink. Correctly, one can only partake of food or drink which is available for several people to share
Synonym Usage
See share 1.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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partakernoun
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prepartakeverb (used without object)
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partakableadjective
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unpartakenadjective
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unpartakingadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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partakesimple
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partakessimple
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have partakenperfect
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has partakenperfect
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am partakingprogressive
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are partakingprogressive
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is partakingprogressive
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have been partakingperfect progressive
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has been partakingperfect progressive
Past
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partooksimple
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had partakenperfect
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was partakingprogressive
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were partakingprogressive
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had been partakingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of partake
First recorded in 1555–65; back formation from partaking, Middle English part taking, translation of Latin participātiō “taking part”; see participation
Explanation
When you partake in something, you join in, like when you partake in the three-legged race and bobbing for apples at your town fall festival. The verb partake is almost always followed by the word in, and used in a somewhat formal context. You partake in whatever activities you participate — or take part — in, like when you partake in a backyard football game or partake in your family's holiday cookie making party. If you get a share of something, you also partake of it, like when you partake of the delicious buffet at your cousin's wedding.
Vocabulary lists containing partake
Twelfth Night
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"Wuthering Heights" by Emily Bronte, Chapters 1–5
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Mythology
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
West Virginia adopted the nation’s first program to make those funds universally available in 2021 and today, 18 states are inviting any student to partake, regardless of family income or existing private school enrollment.
From Salon ● Jul. 27, 2026
And like Cretton, I partake in something that is more of a performance than a conversation.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 17, 2026
Between blocks of talks, attendees partake in activities from the glacier show-and-tell to an iNaturalist BioBlitz in Stanley Park to a field trip to the local Renaissance faire.
From Slate ● May 8, 2026
The most fortunate part of Bell Labs’ situation, however, was that in being attached to a monopoly it could partake in long-term thinking.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 28, 2026
“Inverted snobbery, more like. I simply don’t see any good reason for our trooping off to partake of the bounty of the Lady of the Manor. We’re perfectly all right here.”
From "The Dark is Rising" by Susan Cooper
The new movie partakes of that same sense of damage, regret and reconciliation.
From Washington Post ● Dec. 1, 2022
The latest research adds on to exciting global research around dogs and language, like the study Bunny the Talking Dog partakes in, as Salon has previously reported.
From Salon ● Jan. 11, 2022
Then, in a scene that borders on the surreal, Anna partakes in a ritual that releases her from the past, resulting in a kind of rebirth.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 7, 2021
Trade, conquest, reproduction, translation, displacement, intermarriage: Art partakes of these movements, mutates en route, gets new identities as it circulates and resettles.
From New York Times ● Mar. 25, 2021
There my wife and daughter await me, and our curé partakes of our little supper at twelve.
From Checkmate by Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu
The question hung over October’s Yale Family Weekend, as parents partook of cherished traditions like performances by the Yale Glee Club, lectures by distinguished faculty and tours of the neo-Gothic-style campus.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 10, 2025
The King and Queen later partook in a tree planting ceremony at Rideau Hall, the official residence of Canada's governor general.
From BBC ● May 26, 2025
About six months after I partook in the production, there are moments I’ll catch myself thinking about the show and the choice I was presented with.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 6, 2025
When asked by Henley to return his stolen property, the defendants failed to comply and instead, partook in a lengthy campaign to prevent Henley from recovering the notes.
From Salon ● Feb. 21, 2024
There was the Duchess, though she rarely partook in public.
From "Secrets at Sea" by Richard Peck
She has partaken in the initiation ritual of a seemingly terrifying role-playing game where users — mostly young people — experience bizarre supernatural symptoms.
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 21, 2022
The thing is, I had not, until recently, partaken in this magical quartet in one of their more obvious, beloved iterations: spaghetti carbonara.
From Washington Post ● Feb. 23, 2022
Irving has sometimes expressed contrition about his more inexplicable behavior, but more often he’s partaken in modern celebrity’s favorite pastime: claiming he’s a victim of the media.
From Slate ● Jan. 14, 2021
Mulligan lent his moniker to the second chances that pretty much everyone has partaken in on golf courses across America.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 15, 2020
She had partaken of the arts—road companies of plays and even operas, with their magic and promise of an aromatic world outside.
From "East of Eden" by John Steinbeck
During her dream bridal shower, Williams and her friends munched on Asian food before partaking in a lip-synch battle.
From MarketWatch ● Dec. 29, 2025
Even investors who aren’t partaking in the selling should pay attention to big losers.
From Barron's ● Nov. 25, 2025
So partaking with ample time between races is allowed.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2025
Alec spent his teens and early 20s helping out around Erewhon, a fast-tracked corporate education that included partaking in the human guinea pig sample sessions led by his mother.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 2, 2024
Their readers’ reward consists of partaking in—and, if they themselves write, helping to preserve—this rich patrimony.
From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
