take one's life in one's hands

verb

To take a great risk; to risk death.

“You take your life in your hands when you travel through that bandit country.”

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Meanings

verbtake one's life in one's hands (third-person singular simple present takes one's life in one's hands, present participle taking one's life in one's hands, simple past took one's life in one's hands, past participle taken one's life in one's hands)

present singular third person takes one's life in one's hands · participle present taking one's life in one's hands · past took one's life in one's hands · participle past taken one's life in one's hands · alternative take one's life in one's own hands

  1. To take a great risk; to risk death.

    You take your life in your hands when you travel through that bandit country.

Cite this entry
APA

take one's life in one's hands. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 5, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/take%20one's%20life%20in%20one's%20hands

MLA

“take one's life in one's hands.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/take%20one's%20life%20in%20one's%20hands. Accessed November 5, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “take one's life in one's hands,” accessed November 5, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/take%20one's%20life%20in%20one's%20hands.

Source: take one's life in one's hands on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.