Take down a notch
Also, take down a peg . Deflate or humble someone, as in He’s so arrogant that I wish someone would take him down a notch , or That defeat took them down a peg . Both notch and peg in this idiom allude to a series, the former of indentations, the latter of knobs, used to raise or lower something. Specifically, peg alludes to the pegs used to lower a ship’s colors. Their figurative use dates from the second half of the 1600s. Also see cut down , def. 4.
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- Take exception to
Disagree with, object to, as in I take exception to that remark about unfair practices. This idiom, first recorded in 1542, uses exception in the sense of “objection,” a meaning obsolete except in a few phrases.
- Take for gospel
see: take as gospel
- Take gas
take five
- Take heat
take someone for a ride
- Take hold
1. Grasp, as in Take hold of this end of the rope. [ Late 1500s ] 2. Become established, as in The new vines quickly took hold, or This idea will never take hold with the voters. [ c. 1300 ]