Jump To:

• take-in
  take-in

  noun

  a deception, fraud, or imposition.
• take in
  take in

  verb

  to comprehend or understand

take-in

American  

[tayk-in] / ˈteɪkˌɪn /

noun

Informal.

1. a deception, fraud, or imposition.

---

take in British  

verb

1. to comprehend or understand

2. to include or comprise

   his thesis takes in that point

3. to receive into one's house in exchange for payment

   to take in washing

   take in lodgers

4. to make (an article of clothing, etc) smaller by altering seams

5. to include

   the tour takes in the islands as well as the mainland

6. informal to cheat or deceive

7. to go to; visit

   let's take in a movie tonight

---

noun

1. informal the act or an instance of cheating or deceiving

take in Idioms  

1. Admit, receive as a guest or employee, as in They offered to take in two of the orphaned children . [First half of 1500s]

2. Reduce in size, make smaller or shorter, as in I've lost some weight so I'll have to take in my clothes . [Early 1500s]

3. Include or constitute, as in This list takes in all the members, past and present . [Mid-1600s]

4. Understand, as in I couldn't take in all that French dialogue in the movie . [Second half of 1600s]

5. Deceive, swindle, as in That alleged fundraiser took me in completely . [First half of 1700s]

6. Look at thoroughly, as in We want to take in all the sights . [First half of 1700s]

7. Accept work to be done at home, as in His grandmother took in washing to support her children . [First half of 1800s]

8. Receive as proceeds, as in We had a good audience; how much did we take in? [Late 1800s] Also see the following entries beginning with take in .

---

Etymology

Origin of take-in

First recorded in 1770–80; noun use of verb phrase take in

---

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

take-in take in

Sunday is also a day I get to enjoy take-in from my favorite restaurants.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 21, 2024

Almost always, she said, there is a predictable sequence in which people take-in an eclipse: it begins with a sense of wrongness and primal fear, followed by a feeling of connectedness and insignificance.

From BBC ● Apr. 5, 2024

If the people of Standing Rock did not take-in their beloved family and friends, there would be mass homelessness.

From The Guardian ● Feb. 23, 2017

Bordeaux’s Musée des Beaux Arts is also a great take-in for a mere four Euros to enter.

From Washington Times ● Aug. 28, 2015

And even a sequence of three is not to be despised, as that also invites useful increase from the take-in.

From Hoyle's Games Modernized by Louis Hoffmann

And it was a lot for the players to take in too.

From BBC ● Nov. 6, 2026

We had been discussing blended families, so we take in the obvious parallel.

From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 29, 2026

First-time visitors to Paris can easily be overwhelmed by how much there is to take in.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 24, 2026

We can create that feeling at home, setting up a dedicated space to be comfortably still and take in your favorite records, or an unfamiliar one, from start to finish.

From Salon ● Oct. 24, 2026

For a moment, she just wanted to take in everything: the puzzled, terrified expressions on the Gustano kids’ faces; the strange, ugly buildings around them; the emptiness of the street before them.

From "The Strangers" by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Random Word

Spin the wheel and learn a new word!

---

Related Words

• absorb
• receive

---