People often mix up 'took' and 'taken' because both are forms of the verb 'take.' 'Took' is the simple past tense, while 'taken' is the past participle used with auxiliary verbs. Define took. took synonyms, took pronunciation, took translation, English dictionary definition of took. v. Past tense of take. American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. TOOK definition: simple past tense of take. See examples of took used in a sentence. Took functions as the simple past form and stands alone in a sentence: “She took the keys.” Taken, on the other hand, is the past participle and must appear with an auxiliary verb: “She has taken the keys” or “The keys were taken.” Learn the difference between Taken or Took in English. Understand their grammar rules, tense usage, and common examples in simple language. A clear guide for English learners to master taken vs took. / tʊk / us / tʊk / past simple of take (Definition of took from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press) / tʊk / uk / tʊk / past simple of take (Definition of took from the Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary & Thesaurus © Cambridge University Press) take, seize, grasp, clutch, snatch, grab mean to get hold of by or as if by catching up with the hand. take is a general term applicable to any manner of getting something into one's possession or control. The meaning of TOOK is past tense of take. TikTok - trends start here. On a device or on the web, viewers can watch and discover millions of personalized short videos. Download the app to get started.