CATCHES UP Synonyms: 105 Similar and Opposite Words

catches up

verb

present tense third-person singular of catch up

as in traps

to catch or hold as if in a net a young idealist who got caught up in the political fanaticism of the times

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in fascinates

to hold the attention of as if by a spell completely caught up in opera ever since he saw La Traviata

Synonyms & Similar Words

as in interests

to hold the attention of so caught up in the game that she didn't note the passage of time

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in advises

to give information to catch me up on what's been happening at the office

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of catches up In a blind rage after watching his brother die, Duke catches up to one of their assailants and beats him to death — with a crowd watching. — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 30 July 2026 Turning over most of the starting defense two years in a row, coupled with a brutal schedule, finally catches up with the Buckeyes. — Stewart Mandel, New York Times, 15 July 2026 Motonui has long withstood that curse, but trouble catches up to them when disease spreads through the coconut trees and the fisherman report that their once plentiful catch has disappeared. — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 8 July 2026 After tracking Krem's crew across the galaxy, Kara finally catches up with the Brigands on a hostile planet that orbits both a green and a yellow sun. — Lily Brown, PEOPLE, 26 June 2026 Suffice it to say that eventually the tale of childhood catches up with the adult Sasha (played by Amy Zimmer), a filmmaker, who attempts to make sense of her past and Jeremy’s fate by undertaking her own investigation, at several decades’ remove. — Richard Brody, New Yorker, 12 Apr. 2026 If infrastructure catches up, this could become one of the more important shifts in clean transportation. — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 12 Apr. 2026 Overall, Anmuth highlighted improving demand trends as Amazon catches up in the AI race. — Tipranks.com Staff, CNBC, 5 Apr. 2026 The suburban father, who had been living a double-life as a cold-blooded hitman for years, is beginning to question his life and actions as his past catches up with him and his memory fails to serve him due to the early onset of dementia. — Saman Shafiq, USA Today, 22 Mar. 2026

Recent Examples of Synonyms for catches up

Verb

This heat dome traps the smoke from faraway wildfires close to the ground, resulting in hot, humid, hazy, and ultimately unpleasant conditions.

— Leon Imber, New York Times, 17 July 2026
The heat dome — an atmospheric phenomenon that essentially traps hot air over a particular location — built in the West after the first heat wave of the summer began to bake the area last week.

— Emily Mae Czachor, CBS News, 12 July 2026

Definition of traps

Verb

Meanwhile, what fascinates aspiring neurologist Makenzie Stovall is the idea that AI is trying to emulate the brain — an organ whose inner workings continue to leave researchers dumbfounded.

— ABC News, ABC News, 3 Aug. 2026
But the skillful way in which they are woven together belies the efforts that went into telling this story, and Lovely Reader, this dedication to quality fascinates me.

— Rachel Elspeth Gross, Forbes.com, 10 July 2026

Definition of fascinates

Verb

Pushing Content That Doesn’t Interest The Audience New marketers often lead social posts with company news, product features or promotional content without considering what interests their audience.

— Expert Panel®, Forbes.com, 20 July 2026
What’s underneath Beulah and what’s really driving her is what interests me.

— Jackie Strause, HollywoodReporter, 7 July 2026

Definition of interests

Verb

Allegheny National Forest, just around 90 minutes from Erie, Pennsylvania, enchants with rolling peaks that reflect off calm, paddle-friendly waterways.

— Stephanie Vermillion, Travel + Leisure, 7 June 2026
Ella has shades of Holly Hunter's intense, workaholic producer Jane from Brooks' 1987 masterpiece Broadcast News, the smartest person in any room who both exhausts and enchants everyone around her.

— Esther Zuckerman, Time, 12 Dec. 2025