Betake

'To betake' is an archaic verb. It has several obsolete meanings. Currently it is used in an old-fashioned, or sometimes jocular, way. The basic meaning is "To commit oneself, have recourse or resort to any kind of action." It is often used as if it were a more formal way of saying take: this actually sounds more pompous than formal, and you are advised not to use 'betake' in this way. It is often used reflexively: "to betake oneself to one's heels: to retreat in flight, to run away" (OED). For an etymological note about the origins of this word, see be-.

'To betake' is an irregular verb. Its forms are given here:

Base form	past tense	-ed participle	Remarks
betake	betook	betaken	See also take

This is one of the "the 250 or so irregular verbs" listed in Quirk 1985. The list "contains most of the irregular verbs in present-day English ... but is not meant to be exhaustive, particularly with regard to derivative verbs." AWE has copied most of the entries in that list. The verb 'to betake' belongs to Quirk's Class 4 B b.