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to take office

to take office

87 3.6
Begin work in an official job after being elected or appointed
  • phrasal verb
  • /teɪk ˈɔfɪs/
translation icon : asumir el cargo
  • On 11 March 1990, Patricio Aylwin took office as Chile's first elected president since 1970.
  • the president took office
  • the administration took office
  • the government took office

You know, Obama took office near the bottom of the market.

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Examples

  • After taking office, Obama spoke of the need to reform the industry.

  • And when I took office, I received both good advice and some admonitions on what to do and what not to do.

  • As soon as Trump took office, things changed.

  • But he died of cancer before he was able to take office.

  • "About a month after I took office." "Do you still trust me?"

    Fiction book (1991)
  • What you guys should report is that since I took office crime is down significantly in the city of Los Angeles.

  • The new president will take office at a low moment in U.S. relations with its neighbors.

    Academic text (2008)
  • When the new government took office in April, the body formally dissolved itself.

    Academic text (1990)
  • In February 1993, soon after taking office, President Clinton proposed a broad-based energy tax for the United States.

    Academic text (1997)
  • When she took office as mayor, she announced plans to improve the city's infrastructure.

Synonyms

to enter
vsto take office
  • Formal
31 2.5

To begin duties in an official position such as prime minister

focuses on starting service after appointment or election rather than mere duty start
to take on the role
vsto take office
10 3.1

Accept a job, responsibility, or part in a play

refers to beginning an official position after appointment or election not just any job
to accede
vsto take office
  • Formal
1 8.4

To take an official position such as a throne or presidency

is used for beginning service in an official post after appointment or election

Antonyms

to leave office
  • Literature
53 4.2

Stop being a leader with official power, for example a government official or company boss

How Official

inauguration
  • Formal
63 6.0
to swear in
  • Formal
53 4.2
to enter
  • Formal
31 2.5
to take office
87 3.6

Surface Forms

take office infinitive
taking office present participle
takes office third person singular
taken office past participle

Morphology

take + office

The meaning 'to begin serving in an official position' is directly derivable from 'take' (to assume or accept) combined with 'office' (an official post). This is a standard, compositional collocation that follows normal English verb + noun semantics and is cross-linguistically comparable, so a B1 learner who knows the constituents should understand it.

Etymology

Take office comes from the image of a person walking into the workplace and taking the office, sitting at the desk and accepting the role. So, take office means 'to begin serving in an official position'.