Meaning trap
take in
understand or absorb
to fully understand or remember new information, or to notice details around you
Don't mix these meanings
Same phrase, different job.
to fully understand or remember new information, or to notice details around you
Another meaning of 'take in' is 'deceive'; compare the examples to keep the meanings separate.
Hear it in context
Notice where the phrase sounds natural.
- There was so much information in the lecture that I couldn't take it all in.study
- During my first week at university, I had to take in a lot of new information, which was quite challenging at first.IELTS speaking
Fix the pattern
Pattern: take in something | take something in
WrongThere was too much information to take in it.
RightThere was too much information to take in.
Don't add an extra 'it' — the object ('information') is already there.
Patterntake in something | take something in
Use it right
Choose the version that sounds natural in speech.
'Take in' is the natural verb for absorbing information; 'assimilate' is academic.
Build natural chunks
Words that usually travel with it.
take in + informationthe informationit allthe newsthe view
Don't confuse it
'Take in' here is about understanding, not about physically bringing something inside.
Related
- take in (deceive) — Another meaning of 'take in' is 'deceive'; compare the examples to keep the meanings separate.