to take sides
65
3.1
- phrasal verb
- /teɪk saɪdz/
- During the debate, she chose to take sides with the environmental activists.
- take sides on issues
- take sides in debates
- refuse to take sides
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Watch on YouTubeAnd I do not at all want to take sides, left, right, center.
- And I do not at all want to take sides, left, right, center.
- Now, you know me, I'm not here to take sides, but this next election is huge.
- So at the end, he chose the middle ground and didn't take sides basically.
- They too were taking sides, just as you yourself had you set an example.
- You can't avoid taking sides, but that other people take similar opposing sides, right?
- You know, it's bad when you're getting sanctions from the country who during World War Two were like, you know, it's not really our place to take sides here.
- An animal soul turned against itself, taking sides against itself, as he says.
Examples
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To be clear, we are historians and we do not take sides in this conflict.
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Sooner or later, Mr Fowler, one has to take sides if one is to remain human.
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And I do not at all want to take sides, left, right, center.
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I mean, please, the other guy took sides with the Russian dude.
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I have to take sides.
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Sooner or later, one has to take sides.
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I'm not here to take sides.
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Moreover, they have even taken sides in the fighting at times.
Academic text (1997) -
They too were taking sides, just as you yourself had you set an example.
-
The Bush Administration's message was that it did not want to take sides.
Academic text (1991)
Synonyms
137
4.3
To support one person or group in a dispute
135
3.6
Support a person or group in an argument
111
2.9
Support a person, group, or cause during hard times
63
3.0
Support someone in an argument when others disagree
62
4.2
To agree with and support a group, cause, or way of thinking
61
4.3
To support someone when others criticize or attack them
5
5.8
To join and support a group or side
4
4.0
Support one person or group in a disagreement
1
5.1
To support someone in an argument
To support a person or idea by using your influence
Antonyms
How Supportive
65
3.1
∞
1.0
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'to support one person or group' is directly derivable from combining 'take' (assume) with 'side' (a party or position): to 'take a side' = to assume/support that side. This is a straightforward compositional verb + noun collocation that is cross-linguistically common, so a B1 learner who knows both constituents should understand it.
Etymology
Take sides comes from a simple picture: when two people or groups argue, someone would take one of the sides and stand with that group. That's why it now means 'to support' one person or group in an argument.