209 caterpillar
discovered at an early stage) 4 [T] to be in time for: We had
to run fast in order to catch the train. | If you post the letter
now, you'll just catch the last collection. | If we go home now,
we might just catch the 10 o'clock news. → opposite
MISS 5 [T] to get (an illness); become infected with: to catch
a cold 6 [I;T] to (cause to) become hooked, held, fastened, or
stuck: My skirt caught in the door/got caught in the door. | I
caught my dress on a nail. | I got my finger caught in the wire
fence. | (fig.) The company is caught between the need to invest
more money and the need to keep costs as low as possi-
ble. 7 [T] to attract (especially interest or attention): The
unusual panelling on the walls caught our attention. | The
idea caught her imagination. | I'd like another drink; try to
catch the waiter's eye. (=look at him to attract his atten-
tion) 8 [T not in progressive forms] to get or notice for a moment:
I suddenly caught sight of her in the crowd. | The fans
waited at the airport, hoping to catch a glimpse of their idol
as he passed through. | Try to catch a bit of sleep on the
journey. 9 [T not in progressive forms] to hear clearly and/or
understand: I didn't quite catch your last point – could you say
it again? | What did she say? I didn't catch it. 10 [T] to give a
good representation of (a quality) in a picture, piece of
writing etc: The novel catches the mood of pre-war Britain
very well. | The photograph catches her smile perfectly. 11 [I]
to start to burn: The wind was so strong that the fire caught
quickly. → see FIRE (USAGE) 12 [T(OUT) often pass.] (in cricket) to
end (a player's) turn to BAT by taking and holding a ball hit
off the BAT before it touches the ground 13 [T+obj+adv/prep]
to hit (a person or animal); strike: I caught him on the chin
with a heavy punch. 14 [I] act as CATCHER in baseball: Who's
catching for the Yankees today? 15 catch as catch can to
survive in a bad situation by doing whatever you can: It's
been catch as catch can for him ever since he lost his
job. 16 catch fire to start burning 17 catch it infml to be in
trouble for doing something wrong: We'll really catch it from
the teacher if we're late again. 18 catch one's breath a) to
stop breathing for a moment from surprise, fear, shock etc:
The news was so unexpected I caught my breath from
shock. b) to return to your usual rate of breathing after
hard physical effort: Let me sit down for a moment while I
catch my breath. 19 catch you later spoken used when you
have to end a conversation with someone suddenly in order
to say that you will have a chance to talk more when you
see them again: I have a class now, but I'll catch you later,
okay? | Enjoy your trip. Catch you later, maybe.
catch at sthg. phr v [T] to try to take or hold: A drowning
man will catch at anything, even a straw.
catch on phr v [I] 1 to become popular or fashionable: It
was a popular style in Britain, but it never really caught on in
America. 2 [(to)] to begin to understand: It was a long time
before the police caught on to what he was really doing.
catch sbdy. ⇔ out phr v [T(in)] BrE to show (someone) to be
doing something wrong or making a mistake: The prosecut-
ing lawyer tried to catch the witness out by clever questioning.
catch up phr v 1 [(with);T(= catch sbdy./sthg. up)] to come up
from behind and reach the same point or level as: You walk
on and I'll catch up with you later/ (especially BrE) I'll catch you
up later. | At the moment, our technology is more advanced
than theirs, but they are catching up (with us) fast. 2 [(on)] to
do what needs to be done in order to come up to date: I
have to catch up on my work tonight, so I can't come out. | I've
been away from school for two weeks, so I've got a lot of
catching up to do. 3 caught up in included in, often against
your wishes; INVOLVED in: The government got caught up in a
bitter dispute between the miners and their employers.
catch² n 1 [C] an act of seizing and holding something
thrown or hit, especially a ball: a good catch 2 [C] (the
amount of) something caught: The boat brought back a big
catch of fish. | (infml) Her husband was a good catch – he's rich
and attractive. 3 [C] a hook or other apparatus for fastening
something or holding it shut: The catch on this door is
broken. → see also SAFETY CATCH 4 [C] infml a hidden
problem or difficulty; SNAG: That house is extremely cheap;
there must be a catch in/to it somewhere. | The salary is
fantastic, but the catch is that you have to spend six months of
the year in the Antarctic. → see also CATCH-22 5 [U] a simple
game in which two or more people throw a ball to each
other: Let's play catch.
'catch-all¹ n AmE something to hold or catch various small
items, such as a bag or a drawer
catch-all² adj [A] intended to include or take account of all
types, situations, or possibilities: a vague catch-all clause in
the contract to protect the rights of the author
'catch crop n a quick-growing vegetable crop planted
between two rows of another crop to use soil not otherwise
used → compare CASH CROP
catch·er /'kætʃər/ n in BASEBALL the defensive player who
stands behind the BATTER
Catcher in the 'Rye, The a book by J.D. SALINGER about
a boy called Holden CAULFIELD who runs away from school
and goes to New York. The book has been especially popular
with young people because it describes the problems and
experiences of ADOLESCENCE (=the time when a child is
developing into an adult).
catch·ing /'kætʃɪŋ/ adj [F] infml (of a disease) infectious
catch·ment ar·e·a /'kætʃmənt ,eəriə/ n 1 the area from
which a lake or river gets its water 2 the area from which a
school gets its pupils, a hospital gets its patients etc
catch·pen·ny /'kætʃ,peni/ adj [A] derog cheap and worth-
less, but made to appear attractive
catch·phrase /'kætʃfrez/ n a phrase, often with little
meaning, which becomes fashionable and widely used for a
time
catch-22 /ˌkæt twenti'tu:/ n [U] (often cap.) a situation from
which one is prevented from escaping by something that is
part of the situation itself (from the title of a book by Joseph
Heller about the experiences of an American airforce pilot): I
can't get a job unless I belong to the union, and I can't join the
union until I've got a job – it's a case of catch-22/it's a catch-22
situation!
catch·word /'kætʃwɜːd||wɜːrd/ n a word or phrase repeated
so regularly that it becomes representative of a political party,
newspaper etc; SLOGAN
catch·y /'kætʃi/ adj (of a tune or song) easy to remember: a
catchy song —ily adv
cat·e·chis·m /'kætəˌkɪzəm/ n a set of questions and
answers, often in the form of a small book, used for religious
instruction in some branches of the Christian Church
—chist n
cat·e·chize also -chise BrE /'kætəˌkaɪz/ v [T] to teach
(someone) religion by a process of question and answer
cat·e·gor·i·cal /ˌkætə'gɒrɪkəl||'gɑː-, -'gɔː-/ adj uncondi-
tional; made without any doubt in the mind of the speaker
or writer: a categorical statement/assurance | The government
has issued a categorical denial of this rumour. —ly /kli/ adv:
He categorically denied having seen it.
cat·e·go·rize also -rise BrE /'kætəgəraɪz/ v [T(as)] to put in a
category; CLASSIFY: His politics are fairly left-wing, but he
doesn't like to be categorized as a socialist. | Her writing is
very individual – it's difficult to categorize. —rization
/ˌkætəgəraɪ'zeɪʃən||-ə-/ n [C,U]
cat·e·go·ry /'kætəgəri||-gɔːri/ n a division or class in a
system for dividing objects into groups according to their
nature or type: The voters fall into three main categories:
Republicans, Democrats, and 'Don't Knows'.
ca·ter /'keɪtər/ v [I;T] to provide and serve food and drinks,
usually for payment, at a public or private party rather than
in a restaurant: Who's catering at your daughter's wedding/
(especially AmE) Who's catering your daughter's wedding? →
see also SELF-CATERING —er n: a firm of caterers
cater for sbdy./sthg. phr v [T] to provide what is needed or
wanted by: a holiday company that caters mainly for young
people | Our newspapers try to cater for all opinions.
cater to sbdy./sthg. phr v [T] to try to satisfy (desires or
needs, especially of a bad kind): Those newspapers cater to
the lowest tastes. | She refused to cater to his ridiculous
demands.
cat·er·pil·lar /'kætə,pɪlər||-tər-/ n 1 a small long many-
legged wormlike creature (LARVA of the BUTTERFLY and other
insects) which feeds on the leaves of plants 2 also 'caterpil-
larˌtrack – an endless chain of metal plates fastened over the
wheels of a heavy vehicle, such as a TANK