> as lemmas

1542 N. Udall tr. Erasmus Apophthegmes ii. f. 310^v Themistocles..was..pursued in suche wyse, that he was constreigned to take refuge vnto Xerxes kyng of the Persians.

1598 F. Meres tr. Luis de Granada Sinners Guyde 450 Therefore it is the safest remedy, to take refuge in the Hauen of silence.

1606 B. Barnes Foure Bks. Offices 193 By resembling of them which take refuge vpon the mountaines, to those that pitched toyles & snares for wilde beastes.

1611 J. Speed Hist. Great Brit. ix. lvii. 730/1 The Staffords..disperse their Cloude of rebels, and speedily take refuge at Colnham.

1627 in S. A. Gillon Sel. Justiciary Cases (1953) I. 63 Compelling him..to tak his flicht and refudge to ane barne.

1649 W. Peaps Love in it's Extasie II. iv. sig. C3^v/1 We had been far worse, that having fir'd a Member, Would dare to take refuge in the body.

1676 T. Shadwell Libertine 67 At worst, there is a Church hard by; we'll put it to its proper use, take refuge in't.

1764 R. Burn Hist. Poor Laws 228 The Portuguese have a notion of honour, that if a murderer takes refuge in their house, they are bound to protect him.

1791 A. Radcliffe Romance of Forest I. iv. 127 We must take refuge in Switzerland, I think.

1841 M. Elphinstone Hist. India II. x. ii. 397 The king..was borne down by the superior force of his enemies, and was constrained to take refuge in his capital.

1874 J. R. Green Short Hist. Eng. People iii. §7. 147 A thunderstorm once forced the King..to take refuge at the palace of the Bishop of Durham.

1906 Westm. Gaz. 26 July 2/1 We had to take refuge in the covered wooden bridge over the Sarine.

1952 G. F. Hervey & J. Hems Freshwater Trop. Aquarium Fishes 382 They take refuge in under-water crab-holes or by burying themselves in the sand, where they remain until the rains come.

1989 S. Bedford Jigsaw i. 5 My father..said that we must all take refuge with his parents-in-law in Berlin.

2002 D. Lundy Way of Ship (2003) iii. 109 In a strong southwesterly gale, the vessel was under tow to take refuge in Holyhead.

1667 E. Waterhouse Short Narr. Fire London 98 How we of this City can discharge our selves of it, I do not very well know, unless we take refuge in that rule, Quos perdere vult Jupiter dementat.

1700 J. Locke Ess. Humane Understanding (new ed.) iv. iii. 324 For what Safety, what Advantage to any one is it,..to take refuge in the contrary, which is built on something altogether as inexplicable, and as far remote from his Comprehension?

1708 F. Atterbury Acquaintance with God 20 These Persons..take Refuge in Reflections on the..Goodness of God.

1789 F. Burney Court Jrnls. & Lett. (2016) V. 148 I..would have taken refuge in some other topic: but he seemed bent upon pursuing his own.

1821 Ld. Byron Don Juan: Canto IV liii. 97 I would take refuge in weak punch, but rack..Wakes me next morning with its synonym.

1852 H. B. Stowe Uncle Tom's Cabin I. xviii. 296 Dinah perfectly scorned logic and reason in every shape, and always took refuge in intuitive certainty.

1877 ‘Mrs. Forrester’ Mignon I. 113 Capt. Carlyle goes to his own room,..and takes refuge in a cigar.

1908 E. M. Forster Room with View viii. 133 We are obliged to become vaguely poetic, or to take refuge in Scriptural reminiscences.

1948 ‘R. Crompton’ Family Roundabout xv. 167 He had begun of late to take refuge in the interests he had shared with his uncle—first editions, manuscripts, old prints.

1986 E. Longford Pebbled Shore (1988) xii. 184 When challenged on his propaganda, he took refuge in an evasive reply.

2005 Church Times 2 Dec. 23/1 Even on Trinity Sunday preachers are all too apt to take refuge in cosy thoughts about relationships and togetherness.