take up something
Proposed by a contributor, not yet supported by evidence.
Meaning · English
start doing an activity or hobby
Literally: pick up and carry
Register: neutral
Examples
She took up painting last year.
AI-drafted example auto-approved by rule (illustrative, not a corpus attestation)
Sources & notes
Everyday learner phrase (CEFR B1); level cross-referenced from published learner lists. Definition pending editorial review. Definition drafted by AI (@cf/meta/llama-3.3-70b-instruct-fp8-fast) and auto-approved by rule on 2026-08-01; pending editor spot-check.
Common questions
What does “take up something” mean?
start doing an activity or hobby Literally: pick up and carry
Is “take up something” formal or informal?
take up something is generally neutral.