v., caught (kôt), catch·ing, catch·es.

v.tr.

1. To capture or seize, especially after a chase.
2. To take by or as if by trapping or snaring.
3. 1. To discover or come upon suddenly, unexpectedly, or accidentally: He was caught in the act of stealing.
   2. To become cognizant or aware of suddenly: caught her gazing out the window.
4. 1. To take hold of, especially forcibly or suddenly; grasp: caught me by the arm; caught the reins.
   2. To grab so as to stop the motion of: catch a ball.
5. 1. To overtake: The green car caught me on the straightaway.
   2. To reach just in time; take: caught the bus to town; catch a wave.
6. 1. To hold, as by snagging or entangling.
   2. To cause to become suddenly or accidentally hooked, entangled, or fastened: caught my hem on the stair.
   3. To hold up; delay: was caught in traffic for an hour.
7. To hit; strike: a punch that caught me in the stomach.
8. To check (oneself) during an action: I caught myself before replying.
9. To become subject to or to contract, as by exposure to a pathogen: catch a cold.
10. 1. To become affected by or infused with: caught the joyous mood of the festival.
    2. To suffer from the receipt of (criticism, for example): caught hell for being late.
11. 1. To take or get suddenly, momentarily, or quickly: We caught a glimpse of the monarch.
    2. To hear or listen to: caught the news bulletin on the radio; didn't catch the end of your sentence
12. 1. To grasp mentally; apprehend: I don't catch your meaning.
    2. To apprehend and reproduce accurately by or as if by artistic means: an impressionist who caught the effects of wind and water in his paintings.
13. To attract and fix; arrest: couldn't catch their attention; caught the teacher's eye.
14. To charm; captivate.
15. To deceive: failed to be caught by their fraudulent schemes.
16. 1. Informal. To go to see (a performance, for example): caught the midnight show.
    2. To get (something required), usually quickly or for a brief period: catch some sleep.

v.intr.

1. To become held, entangled, or fastened: My coat caught in the car door.
2. To act or move so as to hold or grab someone or something: tried to catch at the life preserver.
3. To be communicable or infectious; spread.
4. To ignite: The fire caught.
5. Baseball. To act as catcher.

n.

1. The act of catching; a taking and holding.
2. Something that catches, especially a device for fastening or for checking motion.
3. 1. Something caught: The mistake you found was a good catch.
   2. Informal. One that is worth having, especially an attractive or admirable marital partner.
4. Sports.
   1. The grabbing and holding of a thrown, kicked, or batted ball before it hits the ground.
   2. A game of throwing and catching a ball.
5. A quantity that is caught: The catch amounted to 50 fish.
6. A choking or stoppage of the breath or voice.
7. A stop or break in the operation of a mechanism.
8. A tricky or previously unsuspected condition or drawback: It sounds like a good offer, but there may be a catch.
9. A snatch; a fragment.
10. Music. A canonic, often rhythmically intricate composition for three or more voices, popular especially in the 17th and 18th centuries.

phrasal verbs:

catch on

1. To understand; perceive.
2. To become popular: Skateboarding caught on quickly.

catch out

1. To detect (another) in wrongdoing or error.

catch up

1. To move fast enough to attain the same progress as another; draw even: caught up to the leader on the last lap of the race.
2. To become equal or on a par with another: finally caught up with his brother in height.
3. To bring an activity to completion or to a state of currentness: catch up on correspondence.
4. To bring (another) up to date; brief: Let me catch you up on all the gossip.
5. To seize or lift suddenly: The wind caught up the umbrella and carried it off.
6. 1. To involve, often unwillingly: was caught up in the scandal.
   2. To captivate; enthrall: I was caught up in the mood of the evening.

idioms:

catch fire

1. To ignite.
2. To become very enthusiastic.
3. To become the subject of great interest and widespread enthusiasm: an idea that caught fire all over the country.

catch it Informal.

1. To receive a punishment or scolding.

catch (one's) breath

1. To rest so as to be able to continue an activity.

catch up with

1. To find or arrest after a period of pursuit: The police finally caught up with him in Omaha.
2. To have unpleasant consequences for, especially after a period of quiesence: mistakes that caught up with him when he ran for President.

catch you later

1. Informal. Used to express good-bye.

[Middle English cacchen, from Old North French cachier, to chase, from Latin captāre, frequentative of capere, to seize.]

catchable catch'a·ble adj.

SYNONYMS  catch, enmesh, ensnare, entangle, entrap, snare, tangle, trap. These verbs mean to take in and hold as if by using bait or a lure: caught in a web of lies; enmeshed in the neighbors' dispute; ensnared an unsuspecting customer; became entangled in her own contradictions; entrapped by a convincing undercover agent; snared by false hopes; tangled by his own duplicity; trapped into incriminating himself.

also catch up

verb

1. To gain possession of, especially after a struggle or chase: capture, get, net, secure, take. Informal bag. Slang nail. See get/lose.
2. To come upon, especially suddenly or unexpectedly: hit on (or upon), surprise, take. Informal hit. See surprise/expect.
3. To perceive, especially barely or fleetingly: descry, detect, discern, espy, glimpse, spot, spy. See see/not see.
4. To get hold of (something moving): clutch, grab, seize, snatch. Informal nab. Idioms: lay hands on. See get/lose.
5. To grasp at (something) eagerly, forcibly, and abruptly with the jaws: nip, snap, snatch, strike. See reach/unreachable.
6. To have a sudden overwhelming effect on: seize, strike, take. See attack/defend, over/under.
7. To go aboard (a means of transport): board, take. See used/unused.
8. To make secure: anchor, fasten, fix, moor, secure. Idioms: make fast. See move/halt.
9. To become or cause to become stuck or lodged: fix, lodge, stick. See move/halt.
10. To gain control of or an advantage over by or as if by trapping: enmesh, ensnare, ensnarl, entrap, snare, tangle, trammel, trap, web. See free/unfree.
11. To deliver a powerful blow to suddenly and sharply: bash, clout, hit, knock, pop, slam, slog, slug, smash, smite, sock, strike, swat, thwack, whack, wham, whop. Informal biff, bop, clip, wallop. Slang belt, conk, paste. Idioms: let someone have it, sock it to someone. See attack/defend, strike/miss.
12. To become affected with a disease: contract, develop, get, sicken, take. Idioms: come down with. See get/lose.
13. To perceive and recognize the meaning of. accept, apprehend, compass, comprehend, conceive, fathom, follow, get, grasp, make out, read, see, sense, take, take in, understand. Informal savvy. Slang dig. Chiefly British twig. Scots ken. Idioms: gethavea handle on, get the picture. See understand/misunderstand.

phrasal verb - catch up

1. To come up even with another: overtake. See seek/avoid, win/lose/recovery.
2. To draw in so that extrication is difficult: embrangle, embroil, implicate, involve, mix up, suck. See free/unfree, participate/abstain.
3. To compel, as the attention, interest, or imagination, of: arrest, enthrall, fascinate, grip, hold, mesmerize, rivet, spellbind, transfix. Slang grab. See excite/bore/interest.

noun

1. The act of catching, especially a sudden taking and holding: clutch, grab, seizure, snatch. See get/lose.
2. A device for fastening or for checking motion: clasp, fastener, hook. See move/halt.
3. A person or thing worth catching: plum, prize. Slang brass ring. See desire.
4. A tricky or unsuspected condition: rub, snag. See limited/unlimited.

Idioms beginning with catch:
catch as catch can
catch at
catch a Tartar
catch one's death (of cold)
catch it
catch red-handed
catch sight of
catch someone's eye
catch some rays
catch some z's

See also early bird catches the worm; get (catch) the drift; takes one to know one (a thief to catch a thief). Also see under caught.

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n

Definition: fastener
Antonyms: release

n

Definition: trick
Antonyms: advantage, boon

v

Definition: come from behind and grab
Antonyms: let go, push

v

Definition: contract an illness
Antonyms: be immune

v

Definition: ensnare, apprehend
Antonyms: free, let go, let off, lose, misplace, miss, release

v

Definition: find out, discover
Antonyms: miss, misunderstand

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A light round or canon for male voices sung as convivial entertainment in England in the 16th-18th centuries. Judicious placing of rests in the music could give rise to double entendres.

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For more information on catch, visit Britannica.com.

A device for fastening a door or gate; usually opened manually from one side only.

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IN BRIEF: To capture or seize in flight or motion.

A spoonful of honey will catch more flies than a gallon of vinegar. — Benjamin Franklin, (1706-1790), American entrepreneur, statesman, scientist and philosopher.

Tutor's tip: I want to catch (to capture, grasp and hold) that ketch (a small sailboat).

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

Dansk (Danish)
v. tr. - fange, overraske, ramme, blive ramt af, blive grebet af, få, antænde, få fat i, nå, hænge i
v. intr. - brænde på
n. - fangst, lås, krog, fælde, gisp

idioms:

• be caught short    komme til at mangle
• be caught up in    blive rodet ind i, sidde fast i
• catch at    gribe efter
• catch hold of    få fat i
• catch in the act    snuppe på fersk gerning
• catch on    slå an, få et job, hænge fast i, vinde ind på
• catch one's breath    få vejret
• catch one's ear    falde i ørerne
• catch out    gribe ud, gribe i en fejl
• catch phrase    kliche
• catch sight of    få øje på
• catch the eye    fange blikket
• catch up    opsnappe, indhente
• catch up on a backlog    indhente, få ordnet
• caught with one's trousers down    grebet med bukserne nede, grebet på fersk gerning
• not be caught dead    ikke blive taget på fersk gerning

Nederlands (Dutch)
verstaan, halen, snappen, pakken, (op) vangen, betrappen, oplopen, zich vastgrijpen, vlam vatten, blijven haken, achtervanger zijn, slot, buit, grendel, knip, valstrik, hapering, overgooien, krijgertje, canon

Français (French)
v. tr. - attraper (qn, qch), recueillir, prendre (par surprise), surprendre, prendre (un bus, un avion), regarder (un programme), aller voir, captiver, éveiller, (GB, Pol) obtenir la parole, saisir, comprendre, sentir, discerner, surprendre (un regard), se prendre, se coincer, accrocher à, se prendre dans, (Méd) attraper, heurter (qn), faire briller (qch), emporter (par le vent), prendre (le soleil, feu), refléter (la lumière), rendre (une atmosphère, un esprit), (Sport) éliminer (cricket), jouer un tour, regagner du terrain (courses)
v. intr. - s'accrocher à qch, frotter contre, prendre feu
n. - fermoir, fermeture, piège/inconvénient, (fig) piège, voix émue, prise, parti (d'un partenaire), (Mus) chanson grivoise en canon

idioms:

• be caught short    être pris de court
• be caught up in    se laisser entraîner par (l'enthousiasme), se trouver pris dans (la circulation), se trouver au milieu de, se trouver mêlé à
• catch at    essayer de saisir, s'accrocher à
• catch hold of    attraper
• catch in the act    prendre sur le fait
• catch it    en prendre une (fam)
• catch on    devenir populaire, comprendre, saisir
• catch one's breath    retenir son souffle
• catch one's ear    captiver, attirer l'attention
• catch out    prendre (qn) de court, prendre sur le fait, attraper, jouer un tour à, éliminer un joueur (cricket)
• catch phrase    rengaine, formule favorite
• catch sight of    apercevoir
• catch the eye    attirer l'attention de
• catch up    regagner du terrain, rattraper un retard, se remettre au courant
• catch up on a backlog    rattraper un retard
• caught with one's trousers down    (être) pris au dépourvu
• not be caught dead    ne pas vouloir être pris sur le fait/en flagrant délit

Deutsch (German)
v. - verstehen, erwischen, fassen, packen, fangen, auffangen, ertappen, sich zuziehen, mitbekommen, hängenbleiben, sich verfangen
n. - Verschluß, Fang, Riegel, Sperrklinke, Falle, Fangen

idioms:

• be caught short    in Bedrängnis geraten
• be caught up in    versunken sein in
• catch at    sich klammern an
• catch hold of    festhalten, zu fassen kriegen
• catch in the act    auf frischer Tat ertappen
• catch it    etwas kriegen (ugs.)
• catch on    zum Gemeingut werden, begreifen
• catch one's breath    zu Atem kommen
• catch one's ear    ans Ohr schlagen
• catch out    ertappen
• catch phrase    Slogan
• catch sight of    erblicken
• catch the eye    jmds. Aufmerksamkeit auf sich lenken
• catch up    einen Rückstand wettmachen
• catch up on a backlog    einen Rückstand wettmachen
• caught with one's trousers down    völlig unvorbereitet
• not be caught dead    (ugs.) nie im Leben

Ελληνική (Greek)
v. - πιάνω, αρπάζω, αδράχνω, τσακώνω, γραπώνω, συλλαμβάνω, κάνω τσακωτό, καταλαμβάνω, προλαβαίνω, προφταίνω, προσβάλλομαι από (ασθένεια) (κν. αρπάζω, κολλάω), αντιλαμβάνομαι, ακούω, τραβώ, προσελκύω, σκαλώνω, μαγκώνω, διαδίδομαι, γίνομαι της μόδας
n. - σύλληψη, πιάσιμο, αλίευμα, ψαριά, (καθομ.) λαβράκι, γαμπρός-κελεπούρι, κούμπωμα, γάντζωμα, (κρυφό) κουσούρι ή μειονέκτημα, λούμπα, παγίδα

idioms:

• be caught short    με στρίμωξαν, (καθομ.) έχω επείγουσα ανάγκη (να πάω στην τουαλέτα)
• be caught up in    βρίσκομαι μπλεγμένος σε, δίνομαι σε
• catch at    κάνω ν' αρπάξω
• catch fire    παίρνω φωτιά
• catch hold of    αδράχνω, γραπώνω
• catch hold of    πιάνω, τσακώνω
• catch in the act    συλλαμβάνω επ' ααυτοφώρω, πιάνω στα πράσα
• catch on    μπαίνω (στο νόημα), αντιλαμβάνομαι, διαδίδομαι, πιάνω
• catch one's breath    παίρνω ανάσα, ξελαχανιάζω, κρατώ την ανάσα μου
• catch one's ear    κάνω κάποιον να μ' ακούσει
• catch out    κάνω τσακωτό, συλλαμβάνω ψευδόμενο
• catch phrase    (καθομ.) φράση της μόδας
• catch sight of    παίρνει το μάτι μου
• catch the eye    τραβώ το βλέμμα/μάτι, χτυπάω στο μάτι
• catch up    αρπάζω, προφταίνω, προλαβαίνω, πιάνω, σκαλώνω
• catch up on a backlog    ξεκαθαρίζω εκκρεμότητες
• caught with one's trousers down    τον πιάσανε με κατεβασμένα τα βρακιά
• not be caught dead    δεν θα με δεις ποτέ να

Italiano (Italian)
intendere, afferrare, riuscire a prendere, prendere, capire, comprendere, cogliere, acchiappare, acciuffare, beccare, pizzicare, catturare, prendersi, buscarsi, contrarre, sentire, aggrapparsi, appigliarsi, serratura, pesca, esitazione, retata, bottino, preda, catenaccio, cricchetto, trappola, trucco, tranello, chiappino

idioms:

• be caught short    trovarsi alla sprovvista
• be caught up in    essere assorto in, essere preso nel, impegolarsi in
• catch at    abbrancarsi a
• catch hold of    impadronirsi di
• catch on    entrare nell'uso comune, divulgarsi, afferrare
• catch out    cogliere in fallo, prendere in castagna, mettere nel sacco, cogliere di sorpresa, prendere alla sprovvista, prendere in contropiede
• catch phrase    motto, slogan
• catch sight of    avvistare
• catch up    ricuperare uno svantaggio, raggiungere, riprendere terreno
• caught with trousers down    preso alla sprovvista

Português (Portuguese)
v. - pegar, agarrar, pescar
n. - presa (m), aquisição (m), embargo (m) de voz, fragmento (m)

idioms:

• be caught short    pegar de calça curta
• be caught up in    estar impedido
• catch at    agarrar com vigor, tomar com desespero
• catch hold of    tomar posse de
• catch on    entender
• catch one's ear    agradar os ouvidos
• catch out    eliminar batedor (beisebol) (Esp.)
• catch phrase    pergunta (f) capciosa
• catch sight of    avistar
• catch up    alcançar ou acompanhar
• caught with one's trousers down    ser pego de surpresa

Русский (Russian)
поймать, поспеть, понять, схватить, подцепить, захват, заманчивая партия, добыча, ловушка, игра в салочки

idioms:

• be caught short    остаться без копейки
• be caught up in    впутаться
• catch at    попытаться схватить
• catch hold of    схватить
• catch on    стать популярным, понять
• catch one's ear    добиться внимания
• catch out    застать врасплох, поймать с поличным
• catch phrase    модное словцо
• catch sight of    заметить
• catch up    догнать, поравняться
• caught with one's trousers down    поймать с поличным

Español (Spanish)
v. tr. - oír, llegar a oír, tomar, entender, captar, comprender, coger, agarrar, asir, empuñar, prender, sorprender, pillar, apresar, atrapar
v. intr. - contagiarse de, llegar a oír, agarrarse, asirse
n. - cerradura, presa, botín, cerrojo, cierre, pasador, pestillo, trinquete, fiador, retén, asechanza, celada, trampa, emboscada, tú la llevas

idioms:

• be caught short    necesidad urgente de ir al baño, estar en apuros
• be caught up in    estar bloqueado en, estar afectado por, estar absorto en
• catch at    tratar de coger, agarrar algo con desesperación, coger algo con malos modales, aceptar prontamente
• catch hold of    agarrar, asirse de, coger
• catch in the act    coger con las manos en la masa, sorprender infraganti
• catch it    atrápalo
• catch on    caer en la cuenta, comprender, popularizarse, coger el truco
• catch one's breath    tomar aliento, contener el aliento
• catch one's ear    llegar a oídos de uno
• catch out    sorprender, pillar, coger en una falta
• catch phrase    slogan, lema, estribillo, latiguillo
• catch sight of    vislumbrar, ver por casualidad
• catch the eye    llamar la atención
• catch up    recuperar un atraso, alcanzar, salir del atraso
• catch up on a backlog    recuperar un atraso, salir del atraso
• caught with one's trousers down    pillado en una situación embarazosa, agarrado desprevenido
• not be caught dead    ¡ni muerto!, ¡ni loco!, no querer o desear ser visto haciendo algo

Svenska (Swedish)
v. - fånga, hinna i tid till, se, överraska, träffa, smittas av, uppfatta, fastna, lura, haka i, fatta eld, brännas vid, gripa efter, slå igenom
n. - lyra (sport), fångst, kap, fälla, stockning i rösten, spärranordning

中文（简体） (Chinese (Simplified))
捕捉, 感染, 赶上, 抓住, 燃着, 捕捉之物, 陷阱

idioms:

• be caught short    冷不防被抓住的
• be caught up in    被卷入, 受某物吸引, 受某物感染
• catch at    试图抓住, 渴望得到, 拼命抓
• catch hold of    抓住
• catch in the act    被当场捉住
• catch on    抓牢, 流行, 理解
• catch one's breath    喘息, 屏息
• catch one's ear    不小心听到
• catch out    发现
• catch phrase    引人注意的文句, 警句, 标语
• catch sight of    看到
• catch the eye    吸引目光
• catch up    很快拾起, 缠住, 赶上
• catch up on a backlog    缺货
• caught with one's trousers down    被当场捉住
• not be caught dead    没被逮个正着

中文（繁體） (Chinese (Traditional))
v. tr. - 捕捉, 感染, 趕上
v. intr. - 抓住, 燃著
n. - 捕捉, 捕捉之物, 陷阱

idioms:

• be caught short    冷不防被抓住的
• be caught up in    被捲入, 受某物吸引, 受某物感染
• catch at    試圖抓住, 渴望得到, 拼命抓
• catch hold of    抓住
• catch in the act    被當場捉住
• catch on    抓牢, 流行, 理解
• catch one's breath    喘息, 屏息
• catch one's ear    不小心聽到
• catch out    發現
• catch phrase    引人注意的文句, 警句, 標語
• catch sight of    看到
• catch the eye    吸引目光
• catch up    很快拾起, 纏住, 趕上
• catch up on a backlog    缺貨
• caught with one's trousers down    被當場捉住
• not be caught dead    沒被逮個正著

한국어 (Korean)
v. tr. - 붙들다, 불시에 습격하다, ~에 미치다, 걸리게 하다
v. intr. - 붙들려고 하다, 기대다, 걸리다
n. - 포착, 횡재물, 함정

idioms:

• be caught short    (돈이) 부족하다
• be caught up in    휘말리다
• catch at    붙잡으려고 하다, 기꺼이 받아들이다
• catch hold of    붙들다
• catch hold of    ~을 붙잡다, 파악하다
• catch in the act    현장에서 잡다
• catch on    붙잡다, 이해하다, 인기를 얻다
• catch one's breath    숨을 죽이다
• catch one's ear    귀에 들어오다
• catch out    야구에서 포구하여 아웃 시키다, 잘못을 간파하다
• catch phrase    유행어
• catch sight of    ~을 발견하다
• catch the eye    눈에 띠다
• catch up    따라가다, 급히 집어 올리다, 채택하다
• catch up on a backlog    쌓여 있던 일을 해내다

日本語 (Japanese)
v. - 捕らえる, つかむ, 間に合う, 追いつく, …にかかる, 染まる, 見付ける, 理解する, 感知する, 引っ掛ける, 火がつく, 燃えつく, 引く, 当たる, 襲う
n. - 捕らえること, 捕球, 捕らえたもの, 漁獲高, 掘り出しもの, いい結婚相手, 掛け金, わな, 輪唱

idioms:

• be caught up in    熱中している, 巻き込まれる
• catch a cold    風邪を引く, 厄介なめにあう
• catch a packet    ひどい傷を受ける, ひどい目にあう
• catch a person napping    人の不意をつく, 人の油断に乗じる
• catch at    …をつかもうとする, 飛びつく
• catch fire    火がつく
• catch hold of    つかむ, 捕らえる, 掴まえる
• catch in the act    捕らえる
• catch on    人気を得る, 理解する
• catch one's breath    息を整える, 息をのむ, ひと息つく, 固唾を飲む
• catch one's ear    耳に入る, 聞こえる
• catch out    見破る, 外で見付ける, アウトにする, 見付ける
• catch phrase    標語, キャッチフレーズ
• catch sight of    見付ける, ちらっと見る
• catch someone off guard    不意を突く
• catch the eye    目に留まる
• catch unawares    不意打ちをくらう
• catch up    急につかむ, 追いつく, 取り戻す, 処罰する
• catch up on a backlog    残務をやり遂げる

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(فعل) أمسك ب, قبض على, اصطاد (الاسم) مسكه, كميه الصيد, حيله, خدعه, لقطه (للزواج مثلا)‏

עברית (Hebrew)
v. tr. - ‮תפס, הבין, לכד, הכה, שאלה מכשילה, משהו חשוד, לכוד‬
v. intr. - ‮נדבק ב-, הסתבך, נאחז, תפיסה, שלל, בריח, מלכוד, עוקץ, טריק, שאלה מכשילה, משהו חשוד, לכוד‬
n. - ‮תפיסה, שלל, בריח, מלכוד, עוקץ, טריק, שאלה מכשילה, משהו חשוד, לכוד‬

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catch phrase	deadliest catch
cosmic catch	Mega Catch Ultra