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
Synonyms & Similar Words
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in securing
to put securely in place or in a desired position
caught back her hair with a barrette
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
7
as in encountering
to come upon face-to-face or as if face-to-face
I'll catch you at the library tomorrow
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
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
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Examples Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of catching
Harlan Selesnick, Miami Herald, 6 June 2024
The Yankees have deep organizational catching depth, starting with Platinum Glove winner Jose Trevino and the rookie Austin Wells at the major league level.
—Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 3 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
Hip impingement can lead to pain, catching and a loss of motion.
—Harlan Selesnick, Miami Herald, 6 June 2024
The Yankees have deep organizational catching depth, starting with Platinum Glove winner Jose Trevino and the rookie Austin Wells at the major league level.
—Gary Phillips, New York Daily News, 3 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
-
Court documents show a Maricopa County Superior Court grand jury indicted Jeffrey Michael Kelly on Oct. 29 on four counts of unlawful use of an infectious biological substance or radiological agent.Perry Vandell, The Arizona Republic, 5 Nov. 2024
-
What Causes Chronic Wasting Disease? CWD is caused by infectious proteins called prions.Jake Parks, Discover Magazine, 5 Nov. 2024
Verb
-
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
-
Wary of the media spotlight, Dan Wilks made fewer headline-grabbing campaign donations after that.Ava Kofman, ProPublica, 2 Oct. 2024
Verb
-
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
-
Opposing productivity means stopping progress.William Dunkelberg, Forbes, 21 Oct. 2024
Verb
-
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
-
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
-
When encountering one of these gaps, the migration job must be helped along manually.Mike Waas, Forbes, 4 Oct. 2024
-
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
-
Hanage foresees wastewater analysis being used to track other communicable viruses, like mpox.Chris Stokel-Walker, WIRED, 4 Oct. 2024
-
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
-
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
-
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
-
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
-
The 50,000 members of the union working at ports from Maine to Texas have been on strike since early Tuesday morning, halting the flow of the majority of containerized imports into the United States, along with many of the exports, disrupting the sales of American businesses overseas.Vanessa Yurkevich, 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 21 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share