take hold

Verb

take hold (third-person singular simple present takes hold, present participle taking hold, simple past took hold, past participle taken hold)

1. To grasp, seize.
   • The astonishing sight of the Cristo do Corcovado took hold of our attention.

   Synonyms:

   lay hold of

2. (intransitive) To take root, become established.
   • Then the highly virulent mental germs skillfully inoculated took a hold in the subconscious mind of European humanity; the disease developed rapidly, spread like wild fire, and raged unabated throughout the width and length of the central empires.1919, Boris Sidis, The Source and Aim of Human Progress
   • Contours of a deal with conservative holdouts who had been blocking McCarthy’s rise had emerged the night before, and took hold after four dismal days and 14 failed votes in an intraparty standoff unseen in modern times.January 7 2023, Lisa Mascaro, Farnoush Amiri, “McCarthy elected House speaker in rowdy post-midnight vote”, in AP News