catch on
Britishverb
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to become popular or fashionable
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to grasp mentally; understand
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Understand, as in Aunt Mary doesn't catch on to any jokes . The verb to catch alone was used with this meaning from Shakespeare's time, on being added in the late 1800s. Also see get it , def. 2.
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Become popular, as in This new dance is really beginning to catch on . [Late 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.
Yardeni: It is worth watching the credit markets, since problems there tend to surface before stocks catch on.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 26, 2026
Glover is not so sure about whether the concept will catch on and says she "can't imagine this happening in Spain, Portugal and Morocco for the next World Cup".
From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026
One expert doubts that new ETFs from Subversive will catch on in a meaningful way.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 9, 2026
She crashed through or over the covers whenever New Zealand offered a hint of width and capitalised on a dropped catch on nought and a missed stumping on 13.
From BBC ● Jun. 27, 2026
I can’t hear my feet tap, but someone must’ve spilled a drink because my sandals catch on something sticky.
From "Rules" by Cynthia Lord
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
