catch on

== English == === Etymology === From catch (verb) + on (preposition). === Pronunciation === (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /kæt͡ʃ ˈɒn/ (General American) IPA(key): /kɛt͡ʃ ˈɑn/, /kæt͡ʃ-/ Rhymes: -ɒn === Verb === catch on (third-person singular simple present catches on, present participle catching on, simple past and past participle caught on) (idiomatic) (transitive (reflexive), Ireland (especially Northern Ireland), informal) Chiefly in the form catch oneself on: to cause (oneself) to get or regain a proper appreciation of a situation; to behave in the expected, sensible way; to stop fooling around or being silly. (intransitive) Chiefly followed by to: to cling or hold on to something; to get stuck on something; to take hold. (New England, cooking, dated) Of food being cooked: to become stuck to the cooking vessel and brown or burn slightly. Of an idea, a thing, etc.: to become fashionable or popular; also, to become established as standard; to become commonplace. Antonyms: go out of fashion, go the way of the dinosaurs Followed by to: to recognize the potential of something; also, to take advantage of or use something (especially an idea, a trend, etc.). (originally US, informal) Chiefly followed by to: to (begin to) understand; to realize. Synonyms: cotton on, glom on ==== Translations ==== ==== See also ==== catch fire, catch on fire catch up === Further reading === “catch on, phrasal v.” under “catch, v.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, March 2026. “catch on, phrasal v.”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.