Recently I had a deep discussion with an American person born and raised in the USA who said that when I say "take care with something" it makes absolutely no sense. That was said because she had never heard "take care with" (meaning "be careful") , but only "take care of" (which means something completely different from what I want to convey).
- May I use "Take care with the cars" instead of "Be careful with the cars", for instance?
- May I use "Take care!" instead of "Watch out!" ?
Or will it make no sense to USA North Americans? What about to British people?
Best Answer
'Take care' as a standalone statement is used as a farewell. I would not use it to say 'Watch out'.
'Take care with (x)' is a perfectly valid way to say 'Be careful with (x)'. - This is actually a valid definition from the Oxford Dictionary
The answer to your first question is yes. The answer to your second question is no.