catch someone napping
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catch someone napping — CATCH OFF GUARD, catch unawares, (take by) surprise, catch out, find unprepared; informal catch someone with their trousers/pants down; Brit. informal catch on the hop. → nap * * * catch someone napping (informal) 1. To detect someone in error… … Useful english dictionary
catch someone napping — the teacher had warned us to be ever prepared, but the unannounced test caught most of us napping Syn: catch off guard, catch unawares, surprise, take by surprise, catch out, find unprepared; informal catch someone with their pants down … Thesaurus of popular words
catch someone napping — informal to do something that someone is not expecting so that you get an advantage over them Brazil caught England napping and scored two goals in the first ten minutes … English dictionary
catch — catch1 W1S1 [kætʃ] v past tense and past participle caught [ko:t US ko:t] ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ 1¦(take and hold)¦ 2¦(find/stop somebody)¦ 3¦(see somebody doing something)¦ 4¦(illness)¦ 5 catch somebody by surprise/catch somebody off guard 6 catch somebody… … Dictionary of contemporary English
catch — 1 verb past tense and past participle caught 1 STOP/TRAP SB (T) a) to stop someone after you have been chasing them and prevent them from escaping: You can t catch me! she yelled, running away across the field. | If the guerrillas catch you, they … Longman dictionary of contemporary English
nap — I. /næp / (say nap) verb (i) (napped, napping) 1. to have a short sleep; doze. –noun 2. a short sleep; a doze. –phrase 3. catch someone napping, to discover someone unprepared or off guard. {Middle English nappe(n), Old English hnappian} II. /næp …
nap — I 1. verb they were napping on the sofa Syn: doze, sleep, sleep lightly, take a nap, catnap, rest, take a siesta; informal snooze, catch forty winks, get some shut eye, catch some Zs, catch a few Zs 2. noun a nap will make you feel better … Thesaurus of popular words
nap — nap1 [ næp ] noun 1. ) count a short sleep, usually during the day: take/have a nap: I think I ll take a little nap this afternoon. 2. ) singular the soft top layer of some cloths, carpets, etc. that consists of short fibers that all lie in one… … Usage of the words and phrases in modern English
nap — I UK [næp] / US verb [intransitive] Word forms nap : present tense I/you/we/they nap he/she/it naps present participle napping past tense napped past participle napped to sleep for a short period of time, usually during the day • catch someone… … English dictionary
off-guard — adjective not prepared or vigilant the blow caught him napping caught in an off guard moment found him off his guard • Syn: ↑napping, ↑off guard, ↑off one s guard, ↑off his guard, ↑off her guard … Useful english dictionary
