Spanish Verbs That Mean To Take

"Take" is one of those English words that is all but impossible to translate to Spanish without some context.

As can be seen in the list below, "take" has dozens of meanings — so it can't be translated with a single Spanish verb or even a handful of them. Although you always should translate to Spanish based on meaning rather than word-for-word, that's especially true with "take."

Meanings and Spanish Translations for 'To Take'

Here are some common uses (though certainly not all) of the verb "to take" in English along with possible translations to Spanish. Of course, the Spanish verbs listed aren't the only ones available, and the choice you make will often depend on the context in which it is used.

to take = to get possession of — tomar — Tomó el libro y fue a la biblioteca. (He took the book and went to the library.)
to take = to transport (something) and give possession to someone else — llevar — Le llevo las manzanas a Susana. (I'm taking the apples to Susana.)
to take = to transport (a person) — llevar — Llevó a Susana al aeropuerto. (She took Susana to the airport.)
to take = to remove, to pick — coger — Cogieron las manzanas del árbol. (They took the apples off the tree.)
to take = to snatch (from someone) — arrebatar — ¿Te arrebató el sombrero? (Did he take your hat?)
to take = to steal — robar, quitar — A Susana le robaron mucho dinero. (They took a lot of money from Susana.)
to take = to accept — aceptar — ¿Aceptan los cheques? (Do they take checks?)
to take = to subscribe to (a newspaper or magazine) — suscribirse, abonarse — Me suscribo al Wall Street Journal. (I take the Wall Street Journal.)
to take = to hold — coger — Déjeme que le coja el sombrero. Let me take your hat.)

to take = to travel by — coger, tomar, ir en — Tomaré el autobús. (I will take the bus.)
to take = to require — necesitar, requerir, llevar — Necesita mucho coraje. (It takes a lot of courage.)
to take = to require or wear (a certain size or type of clothing) — calzar (said of shoes), usar (said of clothing) — Calzo los de tamaño 12. (I take size 12 shoes.)
to take = to last, to use time — durar — No durará mucho. (It won't take long.)
to take = to study — estudiar — Estudio la sicología. (I'm taking psychology.)
to take a bath (shower) — bañarse (ducharse) — No me baño los lunes. (I don't take baths on Mondays.)
to take a break, to take a rest — tomarse un descanso — Vamos a tomarnos un descanso a las dos. (We're going to take a break at 2.)
to take after = to chase, to go after — perseguir — El policía persiguió el ladrón. (The policeman took after the thief.)
to take after = to resemble — parecerse — María se parece a su madre. (María takes after her mother.)
to take apart — desmontar — Desmontó el carro. (She took the car apart.)

to take away, to take from, to take off = to remove — quitar — Les quitaron el sombrero. (They took their hats off.)
to take away, to take off = to subtract — sustraer, restar — Va a sustraer dos euros de la cuenta. (He is going to take two euros off the bill.)
to take back = to return — devolver — No le he devuelto el coche. (I haven't taken back the car to him.)
to take cover — esconderse, ocultarse — Se escondió de la policía. (He took cover from the police.)
to take down = to dismantle — desmontar — Desmontaron la valla publicitaria. (They took the billboard down.)
to take an exam or test — presentar un examen, presentarse a un examen — El otro día me presenté a un examen. (The other day I took a test.)
to take down, to take notes — anotar, escribir, tomar apuntes — Quiero que escriba la información. (I want you to take down the information.)
to take (someone) for — tomar por — Ud. no me tomaría por un chef. (You wouldn't take me for a chef.)
to take in = to deceive — engañar — Me engañé por el farsante. (I was taken in by a liar.)

to take in = to understand — comprender — No pudo comprenderlo. (He couldn't take it in.)
to take in = to include — incluir, abarcar — El parque incluye dos lagos. (The park takes in two lakes.)
to take in = to provide lodging for — acoger — Mi madre acoge a muchos gatos. (My mother takes in many cats.)
to take off = to go away — irse — Se fue como un murciélago. (He took off like a bat.)
to take off weight — adelgazar — Adelgaza por la actividad física. (He is taking off weight through physical activity.)
to take on = to accept or assume (responsibilities) — aceptar, asumir — No puedo aceptar la responsabilidad. (I can't accept the responsibility.)
to take on = to employ — emplear, coger — Empleamos dos trabajadores. (We took on two workers.)
to take out = to remove — sacar — El dentista me sacó una muela. (The dentist took out a molar of mine.)
to take one's word for it — creer — No voy a creerte. (I'm not going to take your word for it.)
to take over = to assume operations — absorber, adquirir, apoderarse — El gobierno se apoderó el ferrocarril. (The government took over the railroad.)

to take a picture — tomar una foto, hacer una foto — Tomé tres fotos. (I took three pictures.)
to take pity on — compadecerse de — Me compadecé los pobres. (I took pity on the poor people.)
to take prisoner — capturar, tomar priso — El policía le capturó el ladrón. (The policeman took the thief prisoner.)
to take up = to begin — dedicarse a — Se dedicó a nadar. (She took up swimming.)
to take a walk — dar un paseo — Voy a dar un paseo. (I'm going to go for a walk.)

Use Caution With Coger

Although coger is an entirely innocent and ordinary word in some regions, in other regions it can have an obscene meaning — take care when using this term.

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Erichsen, Gerald. "Spanish Verbs That Translate 'To Take'." ThoughtCo, Apr. 5, 2023, thoughtco.com/spanish-verbs-that-translate-to-take-3079706. Erichsen, Gerald. (2023, April 5). Spanish Verbs That Translate 'To Take'. Retrieved from https://www.thoughtco.com/spanish-verbs-that-translate-to-take-3079706 Erichsen, Gerald. "Spanish Verbs That Translate 'To Take'." ThoughtCo. https://www.thoughtco.com/spanish-verbs-that-translate-to-take-3079706 (accessed June 5, 2023).