Question

Based on this excerpt from Ernest Hemingway's "In Another Country," what is the contextual meaning of the phrase "take up"?

"Ah, yes," the major said. "Why, then, do you not take up the use of grammar?" So we took up the use of grammar, and soon Italian was such a difficult language that I was afraid to talk to him until I had the grammar straight in my mind.

Answer 1

In this excerpt, "take up" means to start or adopt something new. The major suggests using grammar, and the narrator and others begin incorporating it into their language learning, making Italian more difficult for them.