Bring and Take

Bring and Take Bring and Take Bring and Take By Jacquelyn Landis Writers tend to get confused about when to use bring and take. Many think that the two words can be used interchangeably, but they do have two distinctly different uses. Which one you use depends entirely on your perspective for the action. Bring indicates action coming toward the speaker; take means action taken away from the speaker. So from your perspective, your kids will bring their homework to you to check, and then they’ll take it to school tomorrow. From your kids’ perspective, they’ll take their homework to you and then bring it with them when they go to school tomorrow. The trick is to think about your location. Something coming your way is brought to you. Something going away is taken from you. It can get confusing occasionally, and when it does you have to depend on the surrounding context to help you determine the point of reference. Check out these examples: Be sure to bring a jacket with you in case it gets cold. Be sure to take a jacket with you in case it gets cold. Both can be correct. In the former example, the meaning is to carry the jacket with you to where you are going. It’s likely that this would be something the person you’re joining would say to you. In the latter example, the meaning is to take it away from your starting point. It sounds a lot like something Mom would say as you’re running out of the house. To simplify the concept even more, think of it like this: you bring things here and take them there. It’s not an infallible method, but it works most of the time. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Misused Words category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:7 Types of Narrative ConflictIs There a Reason â€Å"the Reason Why† Is Considered Wrong?How to Style Legislative Terms