prendere piede

Italian

Etymology

Literally, “to take foot”.

Verb

prèndere piede (first-person singular present prèndo piede, first-person singular past historic prési piede, past participle préso piede, auxiliary avére)

1. (idiomatic, intransitive) to catch on

   Synonyms: attecchire, affermarsi, diffondersi, imporsi

   • 2019, George Orwell, translated by Nicola Gardini, Nineteen Eighty-Four, Mondadori:

     In un certo senso, la filosofia del Partito prendeva più facilmente piede tra quelli che non la capivano.

     In a way, the world-view of the Party imposed itself most successfully on people incapable of understanding it.

     (literally, “In a certain sense, the Party's philosophy caught on most easily among those who did not understand it.”)