"catch-as-catch-can" meaning in English

See catch-as-catch-can in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Adjective

Audio: en-au-catch-as-catch-can.ogg Forms: catch as catch can [alternative]
Head templates: {{head|en|adjective|head=catch-as-catch-can}} catch-as-catch-can
  1. (idiomatic) Only when possible or when the opportunity presents itself; intermittent. Tags: idiomatic
    Sense id: en-catch-as-catch-can-en-adj-4jRH56rA
  2. (wrestling) Relating to catch wrestling, a folk style of wrestling with minimal restrictions. Categories (topical): Wrestling
    Sense id: en-catch-as-catch-can-en-adj-1KIUwlKG Categories (other): English entries with incorrect language header, Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 9 51 39 Disambiguation of Pages with 1 entry: 7 63 30 Disambiguation of Pages with entries: 5 67 28 Topics: government, hobbies, lifestyle, martial-arts, military, politics, sports, war, wrestling

Adverb

Audio: en-au-catch-as-catch-can.ogg Forms: more catch-as-catch-can [comparative], most catch-as-catch-can [superlative], catch as catch can [alternative]
Head templates: {{en-adv}} catch-as-catch-can (comparative more catch-as-catch-can, superlative most catch-as-catch-can)
  1. Ad hoc; in any way possible. Related terms: catch as catch can
    Sense id: en-catch-as-catch-can-en-adv-YQ27lwXM
{
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "catch as catch can",
      "tags": [
        "alternative"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "adjective",
        "head": "catch-as-catch-can"
      },
      "expansion": "catch-as-catch-can",
      "name": "head"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "adj",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "My efforts lately have been catch-as-catch-can, not carefully planned.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1952, Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man, Penguin Books (2014), page x:",
          "text": "My wife did indeed provide the more dependable contributions to our income while mine came catch-as-catch-can.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Only when possible or when the opportunity presents itself; intermittent."
      ],
      "id": "en-catch-as-catch-can-en-adj-4jRH56rA",
      "links": [
        [
          "intermittent",
          "intermittent"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic) Only when possible or when the opportunity presents itself; intermittent."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "topical",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Wrestling",
          "orig": "en:Wrestling",
          "parents": [
            "Sports",
            "Human activity",
            "Human behaviour",
            "Human",
            "All topics",
            "Fundamental"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "9 51 39",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "English entries with incorrect language header",
          "parents": [
            "Entries with incorrect language header",
            "Entry maintenance"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "7 63 30",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with 1 entry",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "5 67 28",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Pages with entries",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1980, Walter Armstrong, Wrestling, page x:",
          "text": "In Lancashire and the north of Ireland, the catch-hold or catch-as-catch-can system still finds favour.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Relating to catch wrestling, a folk style of wrestling with minimal restrictions."
      ],
      "id": "en-catch-as-catch-can-en-adj-1KIUwlKG",
      "links": [
        [
          "wrestling",
          "wrestling#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "catch wrestling",
          "catch wrestling"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(wrestling) Relating to catch wrestling, a folk style of wrestling with minimal restrictions."
      ],
      "topics": [
        "government",
        "hobbies",
        "lifestyle",
        "martial-arts",
        "military",
        "politics",
        "sports",
        "war",
        "wrestling"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
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      "audio": "en-au-catch-as-catch-can.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/4/40/En-au-catch-as-catch-can.ogg/En-au-catch-as-catch-can.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/40/En-au-catch-as-catch-can.ogg"
    }
  ],
  "word": "catch-as-catch-can"
}

{
  "descendants": [
    {
      "depth": 1,
      "templates": [
        {
          "args": {
            "1": "es",
            "2": "cachascán",
            "bor": "1",
            "lb": "Peru"
          },
          "expansion": "→ Spanish: cachascán — Peru",
          "name": "desc"
        }
      ],
      "text": "→ Spanish: cachascán — Peru"
    }
  ],
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "more catch-as-catch-can",
      "tags": [
        "comparative"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "most catch-as-catch-can",
      "tags": [
        "superlative"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "catch as catch can",
      "tags": [
        "alternative"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "catch-as-catch-can (comparative more catch-as-catch-can, superlative most catch-as-catch-can)",
      "name": "en-adv"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "adv",
  "senses": [
    {
      "glosses": [
        "Ad hoc; in any way possible."
      ],
      "id": "en-catch-as-catch-can-en-adv-YQ27lwXM",
      "links": [
        [
          "Ad hoc",
          "ad hoc"
        ]
      ],
      "related": [
        {
          "word": "catch as catch can"
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
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      "audio": "en-au-catch-as-catch-can.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/4/40/En-au-catch-as-catch-can.ogg/En-au-catch-as-catch-can.ogg.mp3",
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  "word": "catch-as-catch-can"
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  "categories": [
    "English adjectives",
    "English adverbs",
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English lemmas",
    "English multiword terms",
    "Pages with 1 entry",
    "Pages with entries"
  ],
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "catch as catch can",
      "tags": [
        "alternative"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "adjective",
        "head": "catch-as-catch-can"
      },
      "expansion": "catch-as-catch-can",
      "name": "head"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "adj",
  "senses": [
    {
      "categories": [
        "English idioms",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "English terms with usage examples"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "text": "My efforts lately have been catch-as-catch-can, not carefully planned.",
          "type": "example"
        },
        {
          "ref": "1952, Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man, Penguin Books (2014), page x:",
          "text": "My wife did indeed provide the more dependable contributions to our income while mine came catch-as-catch-can.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Only when possible or when the opportunity presents itself; intermittent."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "intermittent",
          "intermittent"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic) Only when possible or when the opportunity presents itself; intermittent."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "English terms with quotations",
        "en:Wrestling"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1980, Walter Armstrong, Wrestling, page x:",
          "text": "In Lancashire and the north of Ireland, the catch-hold or catch-as-catch-can system still finds favour.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "Relating to catch wrestling, a folk style of wrestling with minimal restrictions."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "wrestling",
          "wrestling#Noun"
        ],
        [
          "catch wrestling",
          "catch wrestling"
        ]
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(wrestling) Relating to catch wrestling, a folk style of wrestling with minimal restrictions."
      ],
      "topics": [
        "government",
        "hobbies",
        "lifestyle",
        "martial-arts",
        "military",
        "politics",
        "sports",
        "war",
        "wrestling"
      ]
    }
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      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/4/40/En-au-catch-as-catch-can.ogg/En-au-catch-as-catch-can.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/40/En-au-catch-as-catch-can.ogg"
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  "word": "catch-as-catch-can"
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{
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    "English adjectives",
    "English adverbs",
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English lemmas",
    "English multiword terms",
    "Pages with 1 entry",
    "Pages with entries"
  ],
  "descendants": [
    {
      "depth": 1,
      "templates": [
        {
          "args": {
            "1": "es",
            "2": "cachascán",
            "bor": "1",
            "lb": "Peru"
          },
          "expansion": "→ Spanish: cachascán — Peru",
          "name": "desc"
        }
      ],
      "text": "→ Spanish: cachascán — Peru"
    }
  ],
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "more catch-as-catch-can",
      "tags": [
        "comparative"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "most catch-as-catch-can",
      "tags": [
        "superlative"
      ]
    },
    {
      "form": "catch as catch can",
      "tags": [
        "alternative"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "catch-as-catch-can (comparative more catch-as-catch-can, superlative most catch-as-catch-can)",
      "name": "en-adv"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "adv",
  "related": [
    {
      "word": "catch as catch can"
    }
  ],
  "senses": [
    {
      "glosses": [
        "Ad hoc; in any way possible."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "Ad hoc",
          "ad hoc"
        ]
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "audio": "en-au-catch-as-catch-can.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/4/40/En-au-catch-as-catch-can.ogg/En-au-catch-as-catch-can.ogg.mp3",
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  ],
  "word": "catch-as-catch-can"
}

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This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2025-03-26 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2025-03-21 using wiktextract (fef8596 and 633533e). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

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