take to task
To lecture, berate, admonish, or hold somebody accountable for his or her actions.
Meaning adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“The manager took the employee to task for being late.”
“After the project failed, the director took the entire team to task for their lack of preparation.”
“The editor took the journalist to task for failing to verify the sources before publishing such a controversial and damaging report.”
- 01
be taken ill
To become ill.
- 02
cross to take up
Alternative form of cross to bear.
- 03
forget to take one's medication this morning
To be annoyed or irritable, or to behave in an ill-mannered way, particularly in the morning.
- 04
get taken in
To be fooled; to fall for.
- 05
give and take
A process of compromise or accommodation.
- 06
give someone an inch and someone will take a mile
Alternative form of give them an inch and they'll take a mile.
- 07
have one's name taken
To receive a yellow card.
- 08
I take it
Used to express one's understanding of another's position.
Last updated August 10, 2026