- 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. 2014.
catch someone napping
Look at other dictionaries:
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 — verb To take advantage of someones inattention … Wiktionary
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
