Take hold means to become established and grow stronger. It's used for things that spread and are hard to stop: a fire, an illness, fear, a new habit or idea. Take hold of something means to grab something firmly.
Want to remember take hold?
Write a sentence — we'll show the mistakes right away and suggest how to say it more naturally.
The check is taking longer than usual. Your feedback will appear here automatically.
fire/illness/panic/idea + takes hold; take hold in + place; take hold of + object = grab
- Once the fire took hold, the firefighters could only protect the houses nearby.
- Panic took hold when the lights went out on the underground.
- Take hold of the handle and pull it towards you.
What changed
First versionThe path is slippery, so take hold the rail.
RevisionThe path is slippery, so take hold of the rail.
Hold the rail needs no preposition, so of often gets dropped here too. But when you grab something with your hand, take hold needs of: take hold of the rail. Without of, the phrase means to spread or become established and takes no object.
When people pick up a fashion or a new product, English more often says catch on: The app caught on with students. Take hold sounds stronger: something that has taken hold is hard to get rid of, like fear or a bad habit.
Your turn
The virus spread slowly at first, but by winter it had ___ across the whole country.
Show the answer
taken hold — The virus spread across the country, which is the meaning to spread and become established, so taken hold without of. Taken hold of needs an object that someone grabs, and the sentence doesn't have one.
Describe how a new habit or idea took hold in your company, school or town. Say what it was and when it happened.
Remote work took hold in our company in 2020, and now most of us come to the office only twice a week.
Learn to use new words without mistakes
Write phrases with the words you are learning. LetsWords shows mistakes in usage and grammar, suggests corrections and explains them, and review helps the words stick.