Phrasal verb
catch out
Meanings
to surprise someone and cause trouble because they were not prepared
to find or expose someone’s mistake or lie, often by asking a difficult question
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Definition
To catch out means to trick someone or find a mistake that shows they are not prepared or are wrong.
If something catches you out, it surprises you and causes a problem because you were not ready for it. A person can also catch someone out by asking a difficult question or noticing an error, often to show that the other person is mistaken. It is commonly used in everyday speech for unexpected difficulties and for exposing mistakes.
Examples
- The sudden change in the schedule caught me out.
- The interviewer tried to catch you out with tricky follow-up questions.
- A small typo caught him out during the presentation.
- They thought the instructions were simple, but one detail caught them out.
Common mistake
Learners often say "catch out someone" instead of placing the object in the middle ("catch someone out").
More phrasal verbs
- go on To go on means to continue or keep happening.
- carry out To carry out something means to do it or complete it, especially a plan, task, or instruction.
- set up To set up means to arrange or prepare something so it is ready to use or happen.
- pick up “Pick up” most commonly means to collect someone or something from a place, usually by going there.
- go back To go back means to return to a place, time, or earlier situation.