Catch vs Loose - What's the difference?

In obsolete terms the difference between catch and loose

is that catch is a type of strong boat, usually having two masts; a ketch while loose is a state of laxity or indulgence; unrestrained freedom, abandonment.

In transitive terms the difference between catch and loose

is that catch is to attract and hold (a faculty or organ of sense) while loose is to make less tight, to loosen.

In intransitive terms the difference between catch and loose

is that catch is to get pregnant while loose is of a grip or hold, to let go.

As nouns the difference between catch and loose

is that catch is the act of seizing or capturing. {{jump|act of capturing}} singular while loose is the release of an arrow.

As verbs the difference between catch and loose

is that catch is To capture, overtake.loose is to let loose, to free from restraints.

As an adjective loose is

not fixed in place tightly or firmly.

As an interjection loose is

begin shooting; release your arrows.

catch

English

Noun

(countable) The act of seizing or capturing. (jump)

The catch of the perpetrator was the product of a year of police work.

(countable) The act of catching an object in motion, especially a ball.

The player made an impressive catch .

Nice catch !

(countable) The act of noticing, understanding or hearing.

Good catch . I never would have remembered that.

(uncountable) The game of catching a ball. (jump)

The kids love to play catch .

(countable) A find, in particular a boyfriend or girlfriend or prospective spouse.

Did you see his latest catch ?

He's a good catch .

(countable) Something which is captured or caught. (jump) (jump)

The fishermen took pictures of their catch .

The catch amounted to five tons of swordfish.

(countable) A stopping mechanism, especially a clasp which stops something from opening.

She installed a sturdy catch to keep her cabinets closed tight.

(countable) A hesitation in voice, caused by strong emotion.

There was a catch in his voice when he spoke his father's name.

It sounds like a great idea, but what's the catch ?

Be careful, that's a catch question.

(countable) A crick; a sudden muscle pain during unaccustomed positioning when the muscle is in use.

I bent over to see under the table and got a catch in my side.

(countable) A fragment of music or poetry. (jump)

* {{quote-book, 1852, Mrs M.A. Thompson, chapter=The Tutor's Daughter, Graham's American Monthly Magazine of Literature, Art, and Fashion, page=266 citation

, passage=In the lightness of my heart I sang catches of songs as my horse gayly bore me along the well-remembered road.}}

(obsolete) A state of readiness to capture or seize; an ambush.

* {{quote-book, 1678,

, passage=You lie at the catch again: this is not for edification.}}

* T. Fuller

The common and the canon law lie at catch , and wait advantages one against another.

(countable, agriculture) A crop which has germinated and begun to grow.

* {{quote-book, 1905, , Eighth Biennial Report of the Board of Horticulture of the State of Oregon, page=204 citation

, passage=There was a good catch of rye and a good fall growth.}}

(obsolete) A type of strong boat, usually having two masts; a ketch.

* 1612 , John Smith, Map of Virginia , in Kupperman 1988, p. 158:

Fourteene miles Northward from the river Powhatan, is the river Pamaunke, which is navigable 60 or 70 myles, but with Catches and small Barkes 30 or 40 myles farther.

(countable, music) A type of humorous round in which the voices gradually catch up with one another; usually sung by men and often having bawdy lyrics.

* 1610 , , act 3 scene 2

Let us be jocund: will you troll the catch / You taught me but while-ere?

* {{quote-book, 1966, Allen Tate, T. S. Eliot: The Man and His Work, page=76 citation
, passage=One night, I remember, we sang a catch , written (words and music) by Orlo Williams, for three voices. }}
(countable, music) The refrain; a line or lines of a song which are repeated from verse to verse. (jump)

* {{quote-book, 2003, Robert Hugh Benson, Come Rack! Come Rope!, page=268 citation
, passage=The phrase repeated itself like the catch of a song. }}
(countable, cricket, baseball) The act of catching a hit ball before it reaches the ground, resulting in an out.

* {{quote-news, 1997, May 10, Henry Blofeld, Cricket: Rose and Burns revive Somerset, The Independent citation
, passage=It was he who removed Peter Bowler with the help of a good catch at third slip.}}
(countable, cricket) A player in respect of his catching ability; particularly one who catches well.

* {{quote-news, 1894, September 16, , To Meet Lord Hawke's Team, The New York Times citation
, passage=
(countable, rowing) The first contact of an oar with the water.

* {{quote-news, 1935, June 7, Robert F. Kelley, California Crews Impress at Debut, The New York Times, page=29 citation
, passage= They are sitting up straighter, breaking their arms at the catch' and getting on a terrific amount of power at the ' catch with each stroke.}}
(countable, phonetics) A stoppage of breath, resembling a slight cough.

* {{quote-book, 2006, Mitsugu Sakihara et al., Okinawan-English Wordbook citation
, passage=The glottal stop or glottal catch is the sound used in English in the informal words uh-huh 'yes' and uh-uh 'no'.}}
Passing opportunities seized; snatches.

* John Locke

It has been writ by catches with many intervals.

A slight remembrance; a trace.

* Glanvill

We retain a catch of those pretty stories.

Synonyms

* (jump) seizure, capture, collar, snatch * grasp, snatch * observation * prize, find; conquest, beau * (jump) haul, take * stop, chock; clasp, latch * snag, problem; trick, gimmick, hitch * (jump) snatch, fragment; snippet, bit * (jump) chorus, refrain, burden

Derived terms

* bycatch * catch fence * catchful * catchy * crowd catch

Verb

(lb) To capture, overtake.

#(lb) To capture or snare (someone or something which would rather escape). (jump)

#:

#(lb) To entrap or trip up a person; to deceive.

#*1611 , :

#*:And they send unto him certain of the Pharisees and of the Herodians, to catch him in his words.

# To marry or enter into a similar relationship with.

#*1933 , (Sinclair Lewis), Ann Vickers , p.108:

#*:The publicsaid that Miss Bogardus was a suffragist because she had never caught a man; that she wanted something, but it wasn't the vote.

#*2006 , Michael Collier and Georgia Machemer, Medea , p.23:

#*:As for Aspasia, concubinage with Pericles brought her as much honor as she could hope to claim in Athens..

#(lb) To reach (someone) with a strike, blow, weapon etc.

#:

#*{{quote-news, year=2011, date=September 28, author=Jon Smith, work=BBC Sport
, title= Valencia 1-1 Chelsea , passage=The visitors started brightly and had an early chance when Valencia's experienced captain David Albeda gifted the ball to Fernando Torres, but the striker was caught by defender Adil Rami as he threatened to shoot.}}
#(lb) To overtake or catch up to; to be in time for.

#:

#(lb) To discover unexpectedly; to surprise (someone doing something).

#:

#(lb) To travel by means of.

#:

#*1987 , , In the Name of the Father , p.111:

#*:After about a kilometer I caught a taxi to Santa Croce.

#

#*2002 , Orpha Caton, Shadow on the Creek , pp.102-103:

#*:Had Nancy got caught with a child? If so she would destroy her parent's dreams for her.

(lb) To seize hold of.

#

#:

#*, III.2:

#*:Her aged Nourse, whose name was Glaucè hight, / Feeling her leape out of her loathed nest, / Betwixt her feeble armes her quickly keight .

#(lb) To take or replenish something necessary, such as breath or sleep.

#:

#(lb) To grip or entangle.

#:

#(lb) To be held back or impeded.

#:

#*

#*:Orion hit a rabbit once; but though sore wounded it got to the bury, and, struggling in, the arrow caught the side of the hole and was drawn out. Indeed, a nail filed sharp is not of much avail as an arrowhead; you must have it barbed, and that was a little beyond our skill.

#(lb) To engage with some mechanism; to stick, to succeed in interacting with something or initiating some process. (jump)

#:

#(lb) To have something be held back or impeded.

#:

#(lb) To make a grasping or snatching motion (at).

#:

#(lb) Of fire, to spread or be conveyed to.

#:

#

#*1906 , Arthur W. Stevens, Practical Rowing with Scull and Sweep , p.63:

#*:Stop gathering, in that gradual fashion, and catch the water sharply and decisively.

#

#:

# To contact a wave in such a way that one can ride it back to shore.

#*2001 , John Lull, Sea Kayaking Safety & Rescue , p.203:

#*:If you are surfing a wave through the rocks, make sure you have a clear route before catching the wave.

#

#:

(lb) To intercept.

#(lb) To seize or intercept a object moving through the air (or, sometimes, some other medium).

#:

#

#*1811 , (Jane Austen), (Sense and Sensibility) , :

#*:she internally resolved henceforward to catch every opportunity of eyeing the hair and of satisfying herself,.

#

#:

#

#:

(lb) To receive (by being in the way).

#(lb) To be the victim of (something unpleasant, painful etc.).

#:

#(lb) To be touched or affected by (something) through exposure.

#:

#(lb) To be infected by (an illness).

#:

#(lb) To spread by infection or similar means.

#*(Joseph Addison) (1672–1719)

#*:Does the sedition catch from man to man?

#*(Mary Martha Sherwood) (1775–1851)

#*:He accosted Mrs. Browne very civilly, told her his wife was very ill, and said he was sadly troubled to get a white woman to nurse her: "For," said he, "Mrs. Simpson has set it abroad that her fever is catching ."

#

#:

#*2003 , Jerry Dennis, The Living Great Lakes , p.63:

#*:the sails caught and filled, and the boat jumped to life beneath us.

#(lb) To acquire, as though by infection; to take on through sympathy or infection.

#:

#(lb) To be hit by something. (jump)

#:

#(lb) To serve well or poorly for catching, especially for catching fish.

#*{{quote-book, year=1877, title= Annual Report of the Ohio State Board of Agriculture, page=135
, passage=The nets caught well, and Mr. Deeley reported it the best fishing ground he ever tried.}}
# To get pregnant.

#:

(lb) To take in with one's senses or intellect.

#(lb) To grasp mentally: perceive and understand. (jump)

#:

#*

#*:“A tight little craft,” was Austin’s invariable comment on the matron;. ¶ Near her wandered her husband, orientally bland, invariably affable, and from time to time squinting sideways, as usual, in the ever-renewed expectation that he might catch a glimpse of his stiff, retroussé moustache.

#(lb) To take in; to watch or listen to (an entertainment).

#:

#(lb) To reproduce or echo a spirit or idea faithfully.

#:

(lb) To seize attention, interest.

#(lb) To charm or entrance.

#*2004 , Catherine Asaro, The Moon's Shadow , p.40:

#*:No, a far more natural beauty caught him.

#(lb) To attract and hold (a faculty or organ of sense).

#:

Synonyms

* (jump) fang, snatch, grab * (jump) capture, take; snare, hook * (jump) take, get

Antonyms

* drop, release

Derived terms

(Terms derived from the verb "to catch") * catchable * catchall * catchbasin * catcher * catch-breath * catch cold * catch a cold * catch a crab * catch a tan * catch as catch can * catch fire * catch it * catch on * catch out * catch over * catch up * caught in the act

loose
English

Etymology 1
(etyl) , whence also (m), (m), via Ancient Greek.
Verb
(loos)
To let loose, to free from restraints.

* Bible, Matthew xxi. 2

Ye shall find an ass tied, and a colt with her; loose them, and bring them unto me.

To unfasten, to loosen.

To make less tight, to loosen.

Of a grip or hold, to let go.

(archery) to shoot (an arrow)

(obsolete) To set sail.

* 1611 :

Now when Paul and his company loosed from Paphos, they came to Perga in Pamphylia: and John departing from them returned to Jerusalem.

(obsolete) To solve; to interpret.

(Spenser)

Synonyms
* (let loose) free, release * (unfasten) loosen, unbind, undo, unfasten, untie * (make less tight) loosen, relax, slacken * (of grip or hold) let go, release * (archery) fire, shoot
Antonyms
* (let loose) bind, constrain * (unfasten) bind, fasten, tie * (make less tight) tighten * (of grip or hold) tighten * (archery) fast
Adjective
(er)
Not fixed in place tightly or firmly.

This wheelbarrow has a loose wheel.

Not held or packaged together.

You can buy apples in a pack, but they are cheaper loose .

Not under control.

The dog is loose again.

* Addison

Now I stand / Loose of my vow; but who knows Cato's thoughts?

Not fitting closely

I wear loose clothes when it is hot.

Not compact.

It is difficult walking on loose gravel.

a cloth of loose texture

* Milton

with horse and chariots ranked in loose array

Relaxed.

She danced with a loose flowing movement.

Not precise or exact; vague; indeterminate.

a loose way of reasoning

* Whewell

The comparison employed must be considered rather as a loose analogy than as an exact scientific explanation.

.

Loose talk costs lives.

(dated) Free from moral restraint; immoral, unchaste.

* 1819 , Lord Byron, Don Juan , I:

In all these he was much and deeply read; / But not a page of any thing that's loose , / Or hints continuation of the species, / Was ever suffer'd, lest he should grow vicious.

* Spenser

loose ladies in delight

* Sir Walter Scott

the loose morality which he had learned

(not comparable, sports) Not being in the possession of any competing team during a game.

He caught an elbow going after a loose ball.

The puck was momentarily loose right in front of the net.

* {{quote-news
, year=2011 , date=September 28 , author=Tom Rostance , title=Arsenal 2 - 1 Olympiakos , work=BBC Sport citation , page= , passage=Tomas Rosicky released the left-back with a fine pass but his low cross was cut out by Ivan Marcano. However the Brazilian was able to collect the loose ball, cut inside and roll a right-footed effort past Franco Costanzo at his near post.}}
(dated) Not costive; having lax bowels.

(John Locke)

Synonyms
* (not fixed in place tightly or firmly) * (not held or packaged together) separate, unpackaged * (not bound or tethered or leashed) free, untethered * (not fitting closely) baggy * (not compact) * (relaxed) loose-limbed, relaxed * (indiscreet) indiscreet * (promiscuous) polygamous, promiscuous, slutty, tarty, whorish
Antonyms
* (not fixed in place tightly or firmly) * (not held or packaged together) packaged * (not bound or tethered or leashed) bound, leashed, tethered, tied, tied up * (not fitting closely) close-fitting, snug, tight * (not compact) compact, firm * (relaxed) tense, tensed * (indiscreet) discreet * (promiscuous) faithful, monogamous
Derived terms
* break loose * cast loose * cut loose * hang loose * let loose * loosen * loose coupling * loose lip * on the loose * stay loose * turn loose
Noun
(en noun)
(archery) The release of an arrow.

(obsolete) A state of laxity or indulgence; unrestrained freedom, abandonment.

(sports)

* 2011 , Tom Fordyce, Rugby World Cup 2011: England 12-19 France [http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/15210221.stm]

The defeat will leave manager Martin Johnson under pressure after his gamble of pairing Jonny Wilkinson and Toby Flood at 10 and 12 failed to ignite the England back line, while his forwards were repeatedly second best at the set-piece and in the loose .

Freedom from restraint.

(Prior)

* Addison

Vent all its griefs, and give a loose to sorrow.

A letting go; discharge.

(Ben Jonson)

Derived terms
* give a loose
Interjection
(en interjection)
(archery) begin shooting; release your arrows

Antonyms
* fast
Related terms
* (l) * (l), (l) * (l) * (l)
Anagrams
*
Etymology 2

Verb
(head)

I'm going to loose this game.

Derived terms
* looser