[catch] vb caught ; catch.ing [ME cacchen, fr. ONF cachier to hunt, fr. (assumed) VL captiare, alter. of L captare to chase, freq. of capere to take--more at heave] vt (13c) 1 a: to capture or seize esp. after pursuit b: to take or entangle in or as if in a snare c: deceive d: to discover unexpectedly: find "caught in the act" e: to check (oneself) suddenly or momentarily f: to become suddenly aware of "caught me looking at him"
2. a: to take hold of: seize b: to affect suddenly c: intercept d: to avail oneself of: take e: to obtain through effort: get f: to get entangled "~ a sleeve on a nail"
3: to become affected by: as a: contract "~ a cold" b: to respond sympathetically to the point of being imbued with "~ the spirit of an occasion" c: to be struck by d: to be subjected to: receive "~ hell"
4. a: to seize and hold firmly b: fasten
5: to take or get usu. momentarily or quickly "~ a glimpse of a friend" "~ a nap"
6. a: overtake b: to get aboard in time "~ the bus" 7: to attract and hold: arrest, engage "caught my attention" "caught her eye" 8: to make contact with: strike
9. a: to grasp by the senses or the mind "you ~ what I mean?" "didn't ~ the name" b: to apprehend and fix by artistic means
10. a: see, watch "~ a game on TV" b: to listen to 11: to serve as a catcher for in baseball 12: to meet with socially "~ you later" ~ vi 1: to grasp hastily or try to grasp
2: to become caught
3: to catch fire
4. of a crop: to come up and become established
5: to play the position of catcher on a baseball team
6: kick over -- catch.able adj -- catch a crab : to fail to raise an oar clear of the water on recovery of a stroke -- catch dead : willing to be publicly exposed--used in negative constructions "wouldn't be caught dead in that shirt" -- catch fire 1: to become ignited
2: to become fired with enthusiasm
3: to increase greatly in scope, popularity, interest, or effectiveness "this stock has not caught fire--yet --Forbes" -- catch it : to incur blame, reprimand, or punishment -- catch one's breath : to rest long enough to restore normal breathing; broadly: to rest after a period of intense activity syn catch, capture, trap, snare, entrap, ensnare, bag mean to come to possess or control by or as if by seizing. catch implies the seizing of something in motion or in flight or in hiding "caught the dog as it ran by". capture suggests taking by overcoming resistance or difficulty "capture an enemy stronghold". trap, snare, entrap, ensnare imply seizing by some device that holds the one caught at the mercy of the captor. trap and snare apply more commonly to physical seizing "trap animals" "snared butterflies with a net". entrap and ensnare more often are figurative "entrapped the witness with a trick question" "a sting operation that ensnared burglars". bag implies shooting down a fleeing or distant prey "bagged a brace of pheasants".
[2]catch n (15c) 1: something caught; esp: the total quantity caught at one time "a large ~ of fish"
2. a: the act, action, or fact of catching b: a game in which a ball is thrown and caught
3: something that checks or holds immovable "a safety ~"
4: one worth catching esp. as a spouse
5: a round for three or more unaccompanied usu. male voices often with suggestive or obscene lyrics
6: fragment, snatch 7: a concealed difficulty or complication "there must be a ~" 8: the germination of a field crop to such an extent that replanting is unnecessary