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Glite Dictionary
to take the liberty

to take the liberty

67 6.8
To do something without asking for permission, as if you are allowed
  • idiom
  • Formal
translation icon : permitirse
  • Look, I took the liberty of buying a wee bottle of wine.

OK, so they took the liberty of creating a profile of a woman named Angela Don.

Examples

  • I took the liberty of choosing some options for this evening's fundraiser.

    Head of State (2003)

  • Oh, I took the liberty of booking you into our hotel.

    Crocodile Dundee (1986)

  • May I take the liberty of asking if you are in the Service?

    Fiction book (1991)

  • Sir, I also took the liberty to go ahead and put it out over the wire.

    The Baytown Outlaws (2012)

  • "What about me?" "I took the liberty of checking your college records, too.

    Fiction book (1998)

  • Wayne, I took the liberty of moving him into the guest cottage.

    The Hard Corps (2005)

  • "We took the liberty of signing your name to the cards," Frederick told her.

    Fiction book (1996)

  • Ah, I took the liberty of inviting Henry's daughter to join us.

    A Good Year (2006)

  • It appears as if someone has taken the liberty of updating your home entertainment system.

    The Cable Guy (1996)

  • I took the liberty of booking a table for us without waiting for your approval.

Synonyms

to presume
vsto take the liberty
74 6.1

To act with too much confidence and do things without permission

is about doing something without asking, emphasizing a permission breach
to take it upon oneself
vsto take the liberty
28 5.3

Decide to do something and accept responsibility without being asked

focuses on unauthorized action and presumptuousness rather than willing responsibility
to take liberties
vsto take the liberty
  • NSFW
6 7.7

Act too familiar with someone or their things without asking

does things without asking and often implies a presumptuous act

Antonyms

to request
∞ 1.0

To ask for something politely or formally

How Presumptuous

to overstep
11 5.9
to take liberties
  • NSFW
6 7.7
to take the liberty
  • Formal
67 6.8
to assume
∞ 3.2

Surface Forms

take the liberty infinitive
took the liberty past
taken the liberty past participle
taking the liberty present participle
takes the liberty third person singular

Morphology

take + the + liberty

The phrase is partially compositional: a learner who knows 'take' (assume) and 'liberty' (freedom) can infer the idea of 'taking the freedom to do something' and thus acting without permission. However, the specific nuance of being presumptuous and the conventionalized collocation 'take the liberty (to)...' may not be fully predictable for a B1 learner without exposure, so it is only partially transparent despite helpful cross-linguistic parallels.

Etymology

The phrase take the liberty comes from the image of someone grabbing permission—like a guest who takes food because they feel they have the liberty to do so. So, to say someone 'took the liberty' means they 'acted without asking' or were a little too bold.