catch
catch is a 5-letter English word with 62 senses as transitive verb, intransitive verb, noun, and verb in the JumbleFix dictionary. One common meaning is: To lay hold on; to seize, especially with the hand; to grasp (anything) in motion, with the effect of holding; as, to catch a ball. Face value is 12 in Scrabble and 13 in Words With Friends. Use the entries below when you need a playable sense, a nearby word, or another arrangement of the same letters.
Definitions
- transitive verb. To lay hold on; to seize, especially with the hand; to grasp (anything) in motion, with the effect of holding; as, to catch a ball.
- transitive verb. To seize after pursuing; to arrest; as, to catch a thief.
- transitive verb. To take captive, as in a snare or net, or on a hook; as, to catch a bird or fish.
- transitive verb. Hence: To insnare; to entangle.
- transitive verb. To seize with the senses or the mind; to apprehend; as, to catch a melody.
- transitive verb. To communicate to; to fasten upon; as, the fire caught the adjoining building.
- transitive verb. To engage and attach; to please; to charm.
- transitive verb. To get possession of; to attain.
- transitive verb. To take or receive; esp. to take by sympathy, contagion, infection, or exposure; as, to catch the spirit of an occasion; to catch the measles or smallpox; to catch cold; the house caught fire.
- transitive verb. To come upon unexpectedly or by surprise; to find; as, to catch one in the act of stealing.
- transitive verb. To reach in time; to come up with; as, to catch a train.
- intransitive verb. To attain possession.
- intransitive verb. To be held or impeded by entanglement or a light obstruction; as, a kite catches in a tree; a door catches so as not to open.
- intransitive verb. To take hold; as, the bolt does not catch.
- intransitive verb. To spread by, or as by, infecting; to communicate.
- noun. Act of seizing; a grasp.
- noun. That by which anything is caught or temporarily fastened; as, the catch of a gate.
- noun. The posture of seizing; a state of preparation to lay hold of, or of watching he opportunity to seize; as, to lie on the catch.
- noun. That which is caught or taken; profit; gain; especially, the whole quantity caught or taken at one time; as, a good catch of fish.
- noun. Something desirable to be caught, esp. a husband or wife in matrimony.
- noun. Passing opportunities seized; snatches.
- noun. A slight remembrance; a trace.
- noun. A humorous canon or round, so contrived that the singers catch up each other's words.
- noun. the act of apprehending (especially apprehending a criminal)
"the policeman on the beat got credit for the collar"
- noun. the act of catching an object with the hands
"Mays made the catch with his back to the plate"
"he made a grab for the ball before it landed"
- noun. a cooperative game in which a ball is passed back and forth
"he played catch with his son in the backyard"
- noun. a fastener that fastens or locks a door or window
- noun. a restraint that checks the motion of something
"he used a book as a stop to hold the door open"
- noun. a drawback or difficulty that is not readily evident
"it sounds good but what's the catch?"
- noun. a break or check in the voice (usually a sign of strong emotion)
- noun. anything that is caught (especially if it is worth catching)
"he shared his catch with the others"
- noun. a person regarded as a good matrimonial prospect
- noun. the quantity that was caught
"the catch was only 10 fish"
- verb. contract
"did you catch a cold?"
- verb. delay or hold up; prevent from proceeding on schedule or as planned
"I was caught in traffic and missed the meeting"
- verb. be struck or affected by
"catch fire"
"catch the mood"
- verb. grasp with the mind or develop an understanding of
"did you catch that allusion?"
"We caught something of his theory in the lecture"
- verb. detect a blunder or misstep
"The reporter tripped up the senator"
- verb. discover or come upon accidentally, suddenly, or unexpectedly; catch somebody doing something or in a certain state
"She caught her son eating candy"
"She was caught shoplifting"
- verb. become aware of
"he caught her staring out the window"
- verb. be the catcher
"Who is catching?"
- verb. catch up with and possibly overtake
"The Rolls Royce caught us near the exit ramp"
- verb. succeed in catching or seizing, especially after a chase
"We finally got the suspect"
"Did you catch the thief?"
- verb. to hook or entangle
"One foot caught in the stirrup"
- verb. cause to become accidentally or suddenly caught, ensnared, or entangled
"I caught the hem of my dress in the brambles"
- verb. spread or be communicated
"The fashion did not catch"
- verb. reach with a blow or hit in a particular spot
"the rock caught her in the back of the head"
"The blow got him in the back"
- verb. take hold of so as to seize or restrain or stop the motion of
"Catch the ball!"
"Grab the elevator door!"
- verb. capture as if by hunting, snaring, or trapping
"I caught a rabbit in the trap today"
- verb. take in and retain
"We have a big barrel to catch the rainwater"
- verb. attract and fix
"His look caught her"
"She caught his eye"
- verb. apprehend and reproduce accurately
"She really caught the spirit of the place in her drawings"
"She got the mood just right in her photographs"
- verb. attract; cause to be enamored
"She captured all the men's hearts"
- verb. reach in time
"I have to catch a train at 7 o'clock"
- verb. suffer from the receipt of
"She will catch hell for this behavior!"
- verb. perceive with the senses quickly, suddenly, or momentarily
"I caught the aroma of coffee"
"He caught the allusion in her glance"
- verb. see or watch
"view a show on television"
"This program will be seen all over the world"
- verb. hear, usually without the knowledge of the speakers
"We overheard the conversation at the next table"
- verb. perceive by hearing
"I didn't catch your name"
"She didn't get his name when they met the first time"
- verb. get or regain something necessary, usually quickly or briefly
"Catch some sleep"
"catch one's breath"
- verb. check oneself during an action
"She managed to catch herself before telling her boss what was on her mind"
- verb. start burning
"The fire caught"
Synonyms
apprehension, arrest, collar, pinch, grab, snap, snatch, stop, gimmick, match, haul, get, overtake, capture, hitch, becharm, beguile, bewitch, captivate, charm, enamor, enamour, enchant, entrance
Common word forms
catched, catcher, catches, catching, catchable, catchment
Words from these letters
If you are holding these tiles, the unscrambler for CATCH lists every valid word you can make from the same letters, including shorter plays.