take its toll
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
To have a negative effect on something or someone over time
Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt
Có ảnh hưởng tiêu cực đến ai đó hoặc điều gì đó theo thời gian
Machine-translated — suggest a fix
Literally: to exact a payment or cost
Where it’s used:
Used
Widespread English
Examples
The long hours took their toll on her health
AI-drafted example auto-approved by rule (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)
Sources & notes
Listed in Wiktionary’s “English idioms” category (retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-07-31; pending editor spot-check.
Common questions
What does “take its toll” mean?
To have a negative effect on something or someone over time Literally: to exact a payment or cost
Is “take its toll” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.