take cover

Idioms

Seek protection, find a hiding place, as in It started to pour so we took cover under the trees, or He wanted to avoid the reporters so we said he could take cover in our summer cottage. This term uses cover in the sense of “shelter” or “concealment,” a usage dating from the 1400s.

Example Sentences

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take cover

Guests, including journalists, administration officials, and cabinet members, were instructed to take cover, with many ducking under tables as exits were secured.

From Salon ● Apr. 25, 2026

"The players and staff fled into nearby bushes to take cover."

From BBC ● Apr. 13, 2026

Broadcast-news anchors, in full glam, take cover under listing canopies, patiently awaiting their next hit.

From Slate ● Feb. 23, 2026

"I thought they were going to kidnap us. I ran to a taco stand to take cover with the people there," Medina told AFP.

From Barron's ● Feb. 22, 2026

The rebels stopped playing their game and ran in different directions to take cover.

From "A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier" by Ishmael Beah

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

take cover

Example Sentences

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