taking

American  

[tey-king] / ˈteɪ kɪŋ /

noun

1. the act of a person or thing that takes.

2. the state of being taken.

3. something that is taken.

4. an action by the federal government, as a regulatory ruling, that imposes a restriction on the use of private property for which the owner must be compensated.

5. takings, receipts, especially of money earned or gained.

6. Archaic. a state of agitation or distress.

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adjective

1. captivating, winning, or pleasing.

2. Archaic. infectious or contagious.

taking British  

/ ˈteɪkɪŋ /

adjective

1. charming, fascinating, or intriguing

2. informal infectious; catching

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noun

1. something taken

2. (plural) receipts; earnings

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• untaking
  adjective
• takingness
  noun
• takingly
  adverb

Etymology

Origin of taking

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English takyng (gerund); see take, -ing ¹, -ing ²

Example Sentences

When Ffion Jones started playing rugby at the age of eight, her focus was simply on doing her best for the team, despite regularly taking knocks to the head.

From BBC • Jun. 8, 2026

The findings were based on analysis of 1,500 women taking part in the company’s ATTAIN-1 and ATTAIN-2 Phase 3 clinical trials.

From Barron's • Jun. 8, 2026

“If they can’t get sufficient investment from the private sector to maximize AI development and deployment, then they will consider taking stakes in some subset of it,” Haines told MarketWatch.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 8, 2026

Shares in Zealand were down 24% in European afternoon trading, taking their year-to-date losses to around 47%.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 8, 2026

With him also came a new gadget for taking blood pressure.

From "The Hiding Place" by Corrie ten Boom