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Glite Dictionary
to catch (someone) napping

to catch (someone) napping

7.5
To find someone not ready or not paying attention
  • idiom
translation icon : sorprender a alguien desprevenido
  • I managed to catch him napping on the couch when I got home from work.

Examples

  • I had been caught napping.

    Fiction book (1992)

  • One day I'll catch him napping.

    The Contender (2000)

  • Well, I said I'd send you home if I caught you napping again, but a boy who knows all about electricity...

    The Boy Who Turned Yellow (1972)

  • John Saunders, what did I tell you I would do if I caught you napping again?

    The Boy Who Turned Yellow (1972)

  • During the exam, the teacher caught the student catching her napping and quickly moved to wake her up.

  • If you don't stay alert, you'll be caught napping when the boss asks for updates.

Synonyms

to catch off guard
vsto catch (someone) napping
15 4.0

To surprise someone so they are not ready to react

finds someone not paying attention or prepared rather than shocked

Antonyms

to prepare
∞ 1.0

Make something ready for use or an event

How Unprepared

trap
752 2.0
ambush
130 5.5
to catch (someone) napping
7.5
to surprise
∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

catch (someone) napping infinitive
catching (someone) napping present participle
catches (someone) napping third person singular
caught (someone) napping past
caught (someone) napping past participle

Morphology

catch + (someone) + napping

The literal parts 'catch' (to find/seize) and 'napping' (sleeping/unaware) transparently combine to the idea of finding someone unprepared or off guard, so a learner who knows the words can often infer the intended meaning. However, the phrase uses a metaphorical extension (not necessarily literal sleeping) and requires pragmatic/contextual inference, so the relation is not fully predictable without exposure.

Etymology

Catch someone napping comes from the clear picture of finding a person asleep: to catch someone while they are napping and not paying attention. So, it means 'to find someone off guard or not ready'.