Synonyms/Hypernyms (Ordered by Estimated Frequency) of verb take_up

13 senses of take up

Sense 1
take up -- (pursue or resume; "take up a matter for consideration")
       => embark, enter -- (set out on (an enterprise or subject of study); "she embarked upon a new career")

Sense 2
take up, latch on, fasten on, hook on, seize on -- (adopt; "take up new ideas")
       => espouse, embrace, adopt, sweep up -- (take up the cause, ideology, practice, method, of someone and use it as one's own; "She embraced Catholicism"; "They adopted the Jewish faith")

Sense 3
take up -- (turn one's interest to; "He took up herpetology at the age of fifty")
       => turn -- (channel one's attention, interest, thought, or attention toward or away from something; "The pedophile turned to boys for satisfaction"; "people turn to mysticism at the turn of a millennium")

Sense 4
take up -- (take up time or space; "take up the slack")
       => occupy, fill -- (occupy the whole of; "The liquid fills the container")

Sense 5
start, take up -- (begin work or acting in a certain capacity, office or job; "Take up a position"; "start a new job")

Sense 6
adopt, borrow, take over, take up -- (take up and practice as one's own)
       => accept, take, have -- (receive willingly something given or offered; "The only girl who would have him was the miller's daughter"; "I won't have this dog in my house!"; "Please accept my present")

Sense 7
assume, take, strike, take up -- (occupy or take on; "He assumes the lotus position"; "She took her seat on the stage"; "We took our seats in the orchestra"; "She took up her position behind the tree"; "strike a pose")
       => move -- (move so as to change position, perform a nontranslational motion; "He moved his hand slightly to the right")

Sense 8
sorb, take up -- (take up a liquid or a gas either by adsorption or by absorption)
       => change state, turn -- (undergo a transformation or a change of position or action; "We turned from Socialism to Capitalism"; "The people turned against the President when he stole the election")

Sense 9
scoop, scoop out, lift out, scoop up, take up -- (take out or up with or as if with a scoop; "scoop the sugar out of the container")
       => remove, take, take away, withdraw -- (remove something concrete, as by lifting, pushing, or taking off, or remove something abstract; "remove a threat"; "remove a wrapper"; "Remove the dirty dishes from the table"; "take the gun from your pocket"; "This machine withdraws heat from the environment")

Sense 10
take in, take up -- (accept; "The cloth takes up the liquid")
       => receive, have -- (get something; come into possession of; "receive payment"; "receive a gift"; "receive letters from the front")

Sense 11
absorb, suck, imbibe, soak up, sop up, suck up, draw, take in, take up -- (take in, also metaphorically; "The sponge absorbs water well"; "She drew strength from the minister's words")

Sense 12
take in, sop up, suck in, take up -- (take up as if with a sponge)
       => consume, ingest, take in, take, have -- (serve oneself to, or consume regularly; "Have another bowl of chicken soup!"; "I don't take sugar in my coffee")

Sense 13
resume, take up -- (return to a previous location or condition; "The painting resumed its old condition when we restored it")
       => change -- (undergo a change; become different in essence; losing one's or its original nature; "She changed completely as she grew older"; "The weather changed last night")

Antonyms of adj taken_up

1 sense of taken up

Sense 1
haunted, obsessed, preoccupied, taken up (predicate) -- (having or showing excessive or compulsive concern with something; "became more and more haunted by the stupid riddle"; "was absolutely obsessed with the girl"; "got no help from his wife who was preoccupied with the children"; "he was taken up in worry for the old woman")

INDIRECT (VIA concerned) -> unconcerned -- (lacking in interest or care or feeling; "the average American...is unconcerned that his or her plight is the result of a complex of personal and economic and governmental actions...beyond the normal citizen's comprehension and control"; "blithely unconcerned about his friend's plight")

Similarity of adj taken_up

1 sense of taken up

Sense 1
haunted, obsessed, preoccupied, taken up (predicate) -- (having or showing excessive or compulsive concern with something; "became more and more haunted by the stupid riddle"; "was absolutely obsessed with the girl"; "got no help from his wife who was preoccupied with the children"; "he was taken up in worry for the old woman")
       => concerned (vs. unconcerned) -- (feeling or showing worry or solicitude; "concerned parents of youthful offenders"; "was concerned about the future"; "we feel concerned about accomplishing the task at hand"; "greatly concerned not to disappoint a small child")