Word.ws English Dictionary

take time by the forelock

take time by the forelock verb: to seize an opportunity quickly before it is no longer available.

Verb

take time by the forelock (third-person singular simple present takes time by the forelock, present participle taking time by the forelock, simple past took time by the forelock, past participle taken time by the forelock)

  1. (idiomatic, imperative, often) To seize an opportunity quickly before it is no longer available.
    • Tell her the ioyous time wil not be staid, / Unlesse she doe him by the forelock take;1595, Edmund Spenser, Amoretti, Sonnet 70
    • […] I knew a Parson's Wife that seldom went to Church, but took Time by the Forelock, and while the Husband (good Man) was taking Care of his Flock, the good Woman at Home was at her Occupation with her Gallant, a rich young Farmer.1726, William Rufus Chetwood, The Voyages and Adventures of Captain Robert Boyle, London: Andrew Millar, published 1728, pages 5–6

Synonyms of take time by the forelock

Forms of take time by the forelock

third-person singular presenttakes time by the forelock
present participletaking time by the forelock
pasttook time by the forelock
past participletaken time by the forelock

Questions about take time by the forelock

What does take time by the forelock mean?
Take time by the forelock means to seize an opportunity quickly before it is no longer available.
What part of speech is take time by the forelock?
Take time by the forelock is a verb.
What is the past tense of take time by the forelock?
The past tense of take time by the forelock is took time by the forelock.

Words near take time by the forelock in the dictionary

  1. take the wind out of someone's sails
  2. take the words out of someone's mouth
  3. take the wrong turn at Albuquerque
  4. take the wrong way
  5. take time
  6. take time by the forelock
  7. take time off
  8. take time out
  9. take to
  10. take to court
  11. take to drink

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: take time by the forelock (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

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