catch out

verb

caught out; catching out; catches out

transitive verb

1

: to detect in error or wrongdoing

caught him out committing perjury

2

: to take unawares or by surprise

Examples of catch out in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

As fishermen wrestled their catches out of flimsy fiberglass boats near a makeshift shoreside market recently, several stopped to talk with CNN, complaining that the war is ruining business. — Nic Robertson, CNN Money, 10 Sep. 2026

The Audi pair almost had a similar problem when Gabriel Bortoleto spun on a greasy but drying track that also caught out and wrecked Verstappen on the opening lap. — Jonathan M. Gitlin, ArsTechnica, 24 Aug. 2026

There were moments against Panama and Ghana where England were either light at the back and caught out in transition, or had their man-to-man press broken with direct balls. — Liam Tharme, New York Times, 30 June 2026

As Germany pushed forward for an equalizer, goalkeeper Manuel Neuer was caught out of position, allowing South Korean forward Son Heung-Min to slot a second goal into the unguarded net. — Tushaar Kuthiala, Encyclopedia Britannica, 22 June 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1759, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Rhymes for catch out

• about
• bailout
• blackout
• blowout
• breakout
• burnout
• buyout
• checkout
• closeout
• cutout
• devout
• dropout