catchall

[ kach-awl ]

/ ˈkætʃˌɔl /

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See synonyms for catchall on Thesaurus.com

noun

a bag, basket, or other receptacle for odds and ends.

something that covers a wide variety of items or situations: The list is just a catchall of things I want to see or do on vacation.

adjective

covering a wide variety of items or situations: The anthology is a catchall collection.

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QUIZ YOURSELF ON OPPOSITES OF RED BEFORE YOU TURN SCARLET

We have a challenge that will make you blush: do you know the many words and ways to describe the opposite of red?

Question 1 of 7

Which of the following colors is used to symbolize AIR?

white

green

red

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Origin of catchall

1830–40, Americanism; noun use of verb phrase catch all

Words nearby catchall

cat burglar, cat cafe, catcall, catch, Catch-22, catchall, catch-as-catch-can, catch at, catch a Tartar, catch basin, catch cold

How to use catchall in a sentence

Opponents of CRT now invoke it as a catchall term for any discussion of systemic racism.
'Critical Race Theory Is Simply the Latest Bogeyman.' Inside the Fight Over What Kids Learn About America's History|Olivia B. Waxman|June 24, 2021|Time
Exploiting that uncertainty, there has been an effort on the right to use the phrase as something of a catchall for nearly any discussion of or focus on race that might trigger frustration.
The Scholar Strategy: How ‘critical race theory’ alarms could convert racial anxiety into political energy|Philip Bump|June 15, 2021|Washington Post
They took “carel” and spat out the word “curry” as a catchall for the food their local cooks would make for them.
The Violent Rise of Curry|Shaan Merchant|March 26, 2021|Ozy
Tracking assignments in a written planner allows students to keep all their assignments in one streamlined place and acts as a catchall, particularly when they have teachers who communicate in different ways.
How to help kids adapt to the chaos that is hybrid learning|Ana Homayoun|March 25, 2021|Washington Post

Defensive runs saved, a catchall FanGraphs metric that measures players in relation to the average, ranks Schwarber as baseball’s second-worst left fielder since 2017.
Signing Kyle Schwarber puts a spotlight on Victor Robles’s defense|Jesse Dougherty|January 11, 2021|Washington Post
Kocurek said he was told he had been terminated “for cause,” a catchall term that allows dismissal for just about any reason.
Two Texas Regulators Tried to Enforce the Rules. They Were Fired.|David Hasemyer, InsideClimate News|December 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
An accusation of witchcraft is vague enough to serve as a kind of catchall for discontent.
Will Saudi Arabia Execute Guest Workers for 'Witchcraft'?|Michael Schulson|March 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
This department is a catchall for a lot of items, and it hides a lot of leaks and wastes in business.
Dollars and Sense|Col. Wm. C. Hunter
The IMF's propensity to provide a "catchall" one-measure-fits-all panacea is nothing short of shortsighted and disastrous.
After the Rain|Sam Vaknin
Most of you in this Chamber didn't know what was in this catchall bill and report.
Complete State of the Union Addresses from 1790 to 2006|Various

British Dictionary definitions for catchall

catch-all