Meaning & use
take stock of
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Meaning
phraseidiom
to think carefully about a situation and assess what is happening or what you have
Grammar: Takes an object after 'of': take stock of your life, take stock of the situation.
Patterns
- take stock of something
At the end of the year, we took stock of our progress and set new goals.
After the accident, he took stock of his life and decided to change jobs.
The company is taking stock of its finances before making further investments.
Common combinations
- take stock of the situation
- The manager paused to take stock of the situation before responding.
- take stock of your life
- Turning forty made her take stock of her life.
- take stock of progress
- The team meets monthly to take stock of progress.
Synonyms and how they differ
Word family
- stocktaking noun
- the act of counting goods in a shop, or a review of a situation
Commonly confused: take stock of or take stock in?
take stock of vs take stock in
Take stock in means to believe or trust something (often in negative: I don't take stock in rumors). Take stock of means to assess.
Practice
Before making a big decision, it's wise to take stock ______ your finances.
Choose one answer.
The idiom is 'take stock of something'. 'In' would give 'take stock in', which means to believe in something, a different meaning. 'For' and 'with' do not fit this idiom.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “take stock of”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.