catch it

Idioms

Also, get it. Receive a punishment or scolding, as in If I forget anything on the shopping list, I'll catch it, or I'm really going to get it when I turn in my paper late. [Colloquial; early 1800s]

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

And if a spark did catch, it could quickly mirror the inferno that was engulfing Pacific Palisades, or worse.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 24, 2026

No wonder everyone is trying to catch it.

From Slate • Nov. 19, 2025

"Our report underscores the need for more urine testing to catch it early and the need to ensure that patients can afford and access therapy once they are diagnosed."

From Science Daily • Nov. 18, 2025

A bird looks like an abstract whorl until you catch it at a particular angle; a man barely emerges from his stone, the cross on his neck just visible.

From The Wall Street Journal • Oct. 3, 2025

A tear slips out before I can catch it.

From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023