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Jenne Phuong
2021-11-13 10:11
Take a heavy toll (on somebody/something)take its toll (on somebody/something) verb phrase
These phrases are most common in conversational English.
To have a negative impact on someone or something; to harm or damage someone or something.
CO2 produced by human activities takes its toll on air quality.
Being stressed out for months has really taken a terrible toll on my mental health.
The increase in fuel price is taking its toll on cost of production.
The verb "take" should be conjugated according to its tense.
The idioms, using the phrases in a figurative sense, appeared in the 1800s, though the idea of literally "taking a toll" dates back hundreds, if not thousands of years. At that time, various bridges and pathways were owned by the communities in which they were situated. These communities charged a "toll" for using their bridges or roads. The "toll" was sometimes a set amount, but sometimes the toll was a percentage of what the traveler was carrying. Sometimes, the bridge keeper extracted a heavy "toll", which was an unpleasant experience.
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