to take wing
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
To fly away; to depart without warning. Oh, God! it is a fearful thing To see the human soul take wing.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “to take wing” mean?
To fly away; to depart without warning. Oh, God! it is a fearful thing To see the human soul take wing.
Is “to take wing” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.