He took out a knife and when he was about to kill me, I woke up.

took 是动词 take 的过去式，take 的意思是"拿、取"。 out 是副词，表示"向外、出来"的意思，常与动词搭配表示"拿出、取出"的动作。 took out 是一个动词短语，意思是"取出、拿出"，表示将某物从某处取出或带出的动作。