take on strength

verb

To commission a soldier, animal or vehicle into the service of the armed forces.

“Taken on strength, 7th Light Horse, 6th April 1915.”

Opposite
strike off strength
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Meanings

verbtake on strength (third-person singular simple present takes on strength, present participle taking on strength, simple past took on strength, past participle taken on strength)

present singular third person takes on strength · participle present taking on strength · past took on strength · participle past taken on strength

  1. CommonwealthambitransitivehistoricalgovernmentTo commission a soldier, animal or vehicle into the service of the armed forces.

    Taken on strength, 7th Light Horse, 6th April 1915.

    1 more example

    To assist him in the task of organizing his unit, Lieutenant-Colonel O'Driscoll took on strength a nucleus of officers and N.C.O.'s who had served in the Newfoundland Militia or the Royal Artillery during the Second World War.

    1964, G. W. L. Nicholson, The Fighting Newfoundlander, 2006 edition, page 521

    Antonyms: strike off strength

  2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see take on, strength.

Synonyms & antonyms

verbTo commission a soldier, animal or vehicle into the service of the armed forces.

Opposite
strike off strength

Origin

From take on (“enlist”) + strength (“armed forces”).

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

take on strength. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/take%20on%20strength

MLA

“take on strength.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/take%20on%20strength. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “take on strength,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/take%20on%20strength.

Source: take on strength on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.