Bring vs Take: Direction and Point of View

Bring and take both describe moving something from one place to another. The difference is the direction we are imagining.

Bring: movement toward

Use bring when something moves toward the speaker, listener or destination that is the focus of the conversation.

• Please bring your notebook to class.
• Can you bring me a glass of water?
• She will bring her laptop to the meeting.

Take: movement away

Use take when something moves away from the speaker or from the current starting point.

• I will take these books home.
• Please take this form to reception.
• He took his umbrella when he left.

The same trip can use both verbs

Imagine a tutor is already in the classroom. The tutor says: Bring your homework to class.

A student at home may say: I need to take my homework to class.

The physical movement is the same. The point of view is different.

People can be brought or taken too

• Can you bring your colleague to the meeting?
• I’ll take the children to school.

Quick decision question

Ask: Is the movement toward the focus point or away from the starting point? This solves most bring/take problems.

Quick practice

(1) Please ___ your passport when you come to the office. (2) I’ll ___ these documents to the bank on my way home. (3) Can you ___ me the charger from the other room?

Answers: bring; take; bring.

Bring back and take back

These phrasal combinations follow the same point-of-view idea. Bring it back usually means return it toward the place or person that is the focus now. Take it back usually means carry it away to the original place.

• The librarian says: Bring the book back next week.
• You tell a friend: I need to take this book back to the library.

Travel language

The distinction appears often in travel and work situations: bring your passport to the appointment, take your luggage upstairs, bring the signed form to reception. Notice where the speaker imagines the destination.