1
as in infectious
capable of being passed by physical contact from one person to another
a cold is often catching before the symptoms even begin
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Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in spreading
exciting a similar feeling or reaction in others
a catching smile that instantly puts patients at ease
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1
as in grabbing
to take physical control or possession of (something) suddenly or forcibly
we tried to catch the kitten before she could sneak out the door
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2
as in getting
to become affected with (a disease or disorder)
you'll catch the flu for sure if you don't get a shot
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3
as in stopping
to bring (something) to a standstill
I caught myself just as I was about to step into the freshly poured concrete
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4
as in securing
to put securely in place or in a desired position
caught back her hair with a barrette
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5
as in knowing
to have a clear idea of
I didn't catch the point you were making about our nation's foreign policy
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6
as in tricking
to cause to believe what is untrue
a number of media outlets were caught by the woman's hard-luck story
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7
as in encountering
to come upon face-to-face or as if face-to-face
I'll catch you at the library tomorrow
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8
as in noticing
to make note of (something) through the use of one's eyes
I looked out the window just in time to catch the neighbor's dog digging up my flower bed
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9
as in chasing
to move fast enough to get even with
despite the suspect's considerable lead, the fleet-footed police officer was able to catch him and make an arrest
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Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of catching
Fairchild Studio, WWD, 2 Aug. 2024
Hip impingement can lead to pain, catching and a loss of motion.
—Harlan Selesnick, Miami Herald, 6 June 2024
Greg Luca, San Antonio Express-News, 21 Oct. 2024
With his route running ability, vertical speed and ability to create yards after the catch, the six-year veteran would cure a ton of Kansas City’s pass-catching woes.
—Kambui Bomani, Forbes, 21 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for catching 
Adjective
For the upcoming Scotch & Soda summer 2025 season, key menswear trends include:
Bold Patterns and Prints: Expect to see a resurgence of vibrant, eye- catching patterns in union with beach stripes and patterns.
—Fairchild Studio, WWD, 2 Aug. 2024
Hip impingement can lead to pain, catching and a loss of motion.
—Harlan Selesnick, Miami Herald, 6 June 2024
Verb
Clark sustained the injury after catching a slant pattern late in the second quarter of Saturday’s 38-24 win against Florida Atlantic, as a defender’s helmet clashed with Clark’s knee.
—Greg Luca, San Antonio Express-News, 21 Oct. 2024
With his route running ability, vertical speed and ability to create yards after the catch, the six-year veteran would cure a ton of Kansas City’s pass-catching woes.
—Kambui Bomani, Forbes, 21 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for catching
Recent Examples of Synonyms for catching
Adjective
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Four counts of unlawful use of an infectious biological substance or radiological agent, a Class 2 felony.Lauren De Young, The Arizona Republic, 20 Nov. 2024
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Sullivan and Sokoloff pay respectful homage to their cinematic inspiration in the first montage, showing the guys’ infectious love of dance crossing over to their daily lives — cooking at the grill, storing a toolbox and making cocktails.Courtney Howard, Variety, 19 Nov. 2024
Verb
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Looking ahead, its beer business should continue grabbing market share and its hard to imagine the wine-and-spirits unit getting much worse.Kevin Stankiewicz, CNBC, 3 Oct. 2024
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Wary of the media spotlight, Dan Wilks made fewer headline-grabbing campaign donations after that.Ava Kofman, ProPublica, 2 Oct. 2024
Verb
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According to the Latin Recording Academy, more than 30 artists took the stage to deliver show-stopping tributes honoring the memories of key figures who made great contributions to Latin music.Nicole Acevedo, NBC News, 15 Nov. 2024
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Opposing productivity means stopping progress.William Dunkelberg, Forbes, 21 Oct. 2024
Verb
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Rekor completed a public offering in February 2024, raising approximately $26,362,000, and entered a Prepaid Advance Agreement in August 2024, securing $14,100,000 in net proceeds.Quartz Bot, Quartz, 14 Nov. 2024
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The company acknowledges its dependence on generating future profitable operations and securing additional financing to meet future obligations.Quartz Bot, Quartz, 14 Nov. 2024
Verb
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When encountering one of these gaps, the migration job must be helped along manually.Mike Waas, Forbes, 4 Oct. 2024
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Doing so decreases likelihood of encountering a rival whitetail, and so, the buck can focus on tending the doe.Josh Honeycutt, Outdoor Life, 3 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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Hanage foresees wastewater analysis being used to track other communicable viruses, like mpox.Chris Stokel-Walker, WIRED, 4 Oct. 2024
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This misconception tends to be due to the rise in influenza and other communicable respiratory infections in the colder months.Patty Weasler, RN, Verywell Health, 9 Oct. 2024
Verb
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Those most at risk of contracting a foodborne illness are pregnant women, infants and young children, older adults and people with weakened immune systems.Olivia Rose, The Arizona Republic, 4 Oct. 2024
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However, younger parents may not have witnessed the devastation that vaccine-preventable infections once caused before the widespread use of vaccines, such as the brain swelling caused by measles or babies developing seizures after contracting whooping cough.Eduardo Cuevas, USA TODAY, 3 Oct. 2024
Verb
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The work stoppage is halting the flow of a wide variety of goods over the docks of almost all cargo ports from Maine to Texas.Allison Morrow, CNN, 3 Oct. 2024
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The work stoppage is halting the flow of a wide variety of goods over the docks of almost all cargo ports from Maine to Texas.Allison Morrow, CNN, 3 Oct. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near catching
Cite this Entry
“Catching.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/catching. Accessed 30 Nov. 2024.
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