[f. TAKE v. + -ING1.]
I. Simple senses. * The action or condition expressed by the verb TAKE.
† 1. Touching, touch: see TAKE v. 1. Obs. rare.
1340. [see TAKE v. 1].
2. Capture, seizure (in warfare, etc.); apprehension, arrest; catching (of fish or other animals): see TAKE v. 2, etc.
c. 1330. R. Brunne, Chron. (1810), 222. After þe takyng of Kilyngworth castelle.
1456. Sir G. Haye, Law Arms (S.T.S.), 53. He herd the newis … or his brothir taking.
1494. Act 11 Hen. VII., c. 23. The same herynges … shuld be of on tyme taking and salting.
1534. in 10th Rep. Hist. MSS. Comm., App. V. 406. If the Kinges Bayleffe be present at the takinge of the same dettor.
1628. Sir S. D’Ewes, Jrnl. (1783), 43. Portsmouth (where he was imprisoned immediatelie upon his taking).
1748. Anson’s Voy., III. viii. 370. The taking of the Manila galeon.
1815. Lady Hawke, Babylon & other Poems, 61, (title) The Taking of the Bastille.
1828. Thirlwall & Hare, trans. Niebuhr’s Hist. Rome, I. 227. For connecting the Roman chronology with the Grecian, the taking of the city afforded a fixed point.
1869. Tozer, Highl. Turkey, II. 228. The taking of Adrianople by the Turks.
† b. A seizure or attack of disease, esp. a stroke of palsy or the like; also, enchantment; blasting, malignant influence: see TAKE v. 7, sb. 3. Obs.
1533. Elyot, Cast. Helthe (1541), 50. Palseys, called of the vulgare people, takynges.
1559. Morwyng, Evonym., 332. The same resisteth the taking, as they cal it, or inchantment.
1605. Shaks., Lear, III. iv. 61. Blisse thee from Whirle-Windes, Starre-blasting, and taking.
1639. T. de Gray, Compl. Horsem., 69. The takings, sleeping-evill, madnesse, and the like.
3. The physical act of possessing oneself of anything, of receiving, accepting, and related senses: see TAKE v. 12, etc.
13[?]. Cursor M., 28578 (Cott.). Þirkin sinnes … ar … for-giuen, Wit worthi taking o þe fode O godds aun fles and blode.
c. 1380. Wyclif, Sel. Wks., III. 345. Aftir takyng of þe Holi Goost.
c. 1460. Fortescue, Abs. & Lim. Mon., xiii. (1885), 142. Wich maner off takynge is callid robbery.
1500–20. Dunbar, Poems, xvii. 1, 5. Eftir geving I speik of taking…. In taking sowld discretioun be.
1505. Sel. Cas. Crt. Star Chamber (Selden), 221. The Town of Glowcestre is fre of all customs and takynges at Worcestre aforeseide.
1526. Pilgr. Perf. (W. de W., 1531), 54. Be not dronken through ouermoche takyng of wyne.
1651. Hobbes, Leviath., II. xxii. 122. A taking of the Sword out of the hand of the Soveraign.
1656. H. Phillips, Purch. Patt. (1676), 1. The letting and taking of Leases.
1660. Wood, Life, Dec. (O.H.S.), I. 359. Their taking of notes at sermons.
1714. Mandeville, Fab. Bees (1725), I. 415. The taking of Snuff and smoaking of Tobacco.
1893. Hodges, Elem. Photogr. (1907), 115. The taking of portraits.
1918. Louisa W. Peat, Mrs. Private Peat, ix. 59. The wise two of us indulged in tea later in the evening, taking it as St. Paul of old recommended the taking of spirits!
1896. Law Times, C. 408/1. The date of the taking of the census … was correctly stated.
b. Mental apprehension or perception (obs.); mental acceptance or reception; estimation.
1398. Trevisa, Barth. De P. R., II. x. (1495), b vj b/1. God … is aboue vnmateryall & aboue worldly takynge.
1568. in Liturg Serv. Q. Eliz. (1847), 517. With pacient takinge and quiett acceptation of this syckness.
a. 1639. Whateley, Prototypes, I. xxi. 253. Manifested in his sorrowful taking of her death.
4. a. Condition, situation, state, plight (in unfavorable sense). Only in phr. in, † at (a) taking, often with defining adj. Obs. exc. Sc.
1522. Skelton, Why not to Court, 933. He is at suche takynge.
1542. Udall, Erasm. Apoph., 158. Wheras thou art in suche takyng, canst fynd in thyn herte to liue?
1592. Lyly, Midas, I. ii. These boyes be droonk! I would not be in your takings.
1635. R. Bolton, Comf. Affl. Consc., iii. (ed. 2), 15. In what a taking was Job.
1662–3. Pepys, Diary, 12 Jan. The poor boy was in a pitiful taking and pickle.
1715. Wodrow Corr. (1843), I. 26. Persons, who have real scruples at oaths, are in a miserable taking.
1837. Mrs. Carlyle, Lett. (1883), I. 65. We are all in sad taking with influenza.
b. spec. A disturbed or agitated state of mind; excited condition, passion. (Const. as in a.)
1577. Hanmer, Anc. Eccl. Hist. (1619), 317. Valens, vnderstanding of this, was in a sore taking.
1581. Pettie, Guazzo’s Civ. Conv., III. (1586), 159 b. Manie excellent and worthie men … comming before princes … haue plainely shewed in what troublesome taking they haue bene in.
1598. Shaks., Merry W., II. iii. 191. Mist. Page. What a taking was hee in, when your husband askt who was in the basket?
1676. Etheredge, Man of Mode, III. iii. By this time your Mother is in a fine taking.
1797–8. Jane Austen, Sense & Sens., xxxvii. Lord! what a taking poor Mr. Edward will be in when he hears of it.
1874. T. Hardy, Madding Crowd, xxx. You must not notice my being in a taking just now.
** That which is taken.
5. a. That which is received or gained; esp. in pl., the receipts or earnings of merchants, tradesmen, or workmen.
1632. Massinger, City Madam, II. i. Some needy shopkeeper who surveys His every-day takings.
1662. Gurnall, Chr. in Arm., III. verse 18. I. lii. (1669), 417/2. To mend their takings in their shop.
1851. Mayhew, Lond. Labour, I. 120/2. The weekly ‘takings’ of the ten thousand men and their families.
1885. G. Denman, in Law Rep., 29 Ch. Div. 469. A charge upon the property, or the takings, or the profits of the concern.
1893. S. A. Barnett, The Unemployed, in Fortn. Rev., LX. 1 Dec., 742. If it be assumed that the average yearly takings of each [public-]house be only £500, then the yearly expenditure on drink by 50,000 men, women and children in the poorest part of London, is £595,000, besides an amount not easily estimated which is spent in the drinking clubs.
b. That which is captured; esp. the fish or other animals caught at one time, a capture, a catch.
1809. Malkin, Gil Blas, V. i. ¶ 67. Heyday! madam, your third husband dispatched already? You must be a most deadly taking.
1855. Robinson, Whitby Gloss., s.v., ‘A rare takking o’ fish,’ a good catch, or a heavy haul.
c. Printing. = TAKE sb. 7.
1808. C. Stower, Printer’s Gram., 467. When the companionship are ready for their first takings of copy.
1875. Ure’s Dict. Arts, III. 640. The MS. … is then handed to a clicker, or foreman of a companionship, or certain number of compositors, each of whom has a taking of copy, or convenient portion of MS., given to him, to be set up in type.
II. Combinations.
6. With adv. or advb. phr., expressing the action of similar combinations of the verb in various senses (see TAKE v. 76–90): as taking away, back, down, for granted, in, off (also attrib., esp. in sense 83 n [b] of the verb), on (in quot. = undertaking, enterprise: cf. TAKE v. 84 d), out, up (in quot. 1683 concr. that which is taken up).
1382. Wyclif, Isa. xlii. 22. Thei ben maad in to raueyn,… in to *taking awei [1388 in to rauyschyng].
1617. Hieron, Wks., II. 249. Those gifts … are lyable to taking away.
1629. W. Bedell, in Ussher’s Lett. (1686), 402. Mr. Usher’s sudden taking away,… admonishes me to work while the day lasts.
1487–8. Durham Acc. Rolls (Surtees), 651. Pro le *takyng-downe et le riddyng fundi dicti cancelli, xxiijs. iiijd.
1864. Gd. Words, 317/2. One hour of taking down makes about six hours’ work in copying.
1876. Lowell, Among my Bks., Ser. II. 174. A childlike simplicity and *taking-for-granted which win our confidence.
1879. Chr. G. Rossetti, Seek & F., 248 Sloth, with its vicious allies of unpunctuality,… hair measures, baseless taking for granted, guess-work.
1598. B. Jonson, Ev. Man in Hum., III. i. The best leaguer that ever I beheld … except the *taking in of—what do you call it?
1603. Knolles, Hist. Turks (1638), 184. Neither is this taking in of the country of Carasina to be accounted a small conquest.
1707. Mortimer, Husb. (1721), I. 27. Parcels of Land that would pay well for the taking in.
1605. Shaks., Macb. I. vii. 20. His Vertues Will pleade like Angels, Trumpet-tongu’d against The deepe damnation of his *taking off.
1683. Moxon, Mech. Exerc., Printing, xxii. ¶ 3. Having Destributed that Taking off he makes another Taking off as before.
1719. De Foe, Crusoe (1840), I. iv. 67. Thou art not worth … the taking off of the ground.
1755. Connoisseur, No. 57, ¶ 3. Imitations of … well-known characters … to which they have given the appellation of taking-off.
1852. Surtees, Sponge’s Sp. Tour, ix. [The] horse … had scrambled out of the brook on the taking-off side.
1881. Times, 14 Feb., 4/2. The taking off at the jumps was awkward, and the landing more ugly still.
1894. H. Nisbet, Bush Girl’s Rom., 180. If a man or woman was to be spared it was … because their taking off was a waste of powder and lead.
1898. L. Stephen, Stud. of Biogr., I. vii. 230. A mere taking-off place for a flight into the clouds.
1422. trans. Secreta Secret., Priv. Priv., 180. That tokenyth hardynesse of herte, grete *takynge on, and stowtesse.
1466. Paston Lett., II. 268. To the glaser for *takyn owte of ii. panys of the wyndows.
1565. *Taking up [see TAKE v. 90 c (b)].
a. 1649. Drumm. of Hawth., Declar., etc., Wks. (1711), 208. The treaty … discharging all taking up of arms against the kingdom.
1683. Moxon, Mech. Exerc., Printing, xxii. ¶ 3. Now he has his Taking up in his Hand, with the Face of his Letter towards him.
1798. in Picton, L’pool Munic. Rec. (1886), II. 224. A constant yearly taking up of money upon new bonds.
1841. Civil Eng. & Arch. Jrnl., IV. 318/1. Gearing for producing … the ‘taking-up’ or ‘traversing motion’ of the plank during the operation of sawing.
7. Attributive Combs., as taking-day; taking-screen (see TAKE v. 33 b).
1836. R. Furness, Astrologer, I. Wks. (1858) 139. On Takin-days, when wit and ale were free.
1897. Pop. Sc. Monthly, Nov., 138. The viewing [screens] differ from the taking screens.
1907. Westm. Gaz., 24 Aug., 14/2. This positive is then mounted in contact with a viewing-screen ruled in precisely the same way as the taking-screen.
