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what it takes

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what it takes

everything that is needed They run health fairs at high schools where teenagers learn about what it takes to take care of a baby.

Usage notes: often used with that's: You've got to spend a lot of money, because that's what it takes to make a championship team.

Related vocabulary: have (got) what it takes

See also: take

what it takes

The necessary expertise or qualities, as in She's got what it takes to make a good doctor, or Inherited wealth is what it takes to maintain that lifestyle. This idiom uses what in the sense of "that which" and take in the sense of "require." [1920]

See also: take

what it takes

The necessary expertise or qualities needed for success: She has what it takes to be a doctor.

See also: take