Catch up or ketchup?
catch up is a verb meaning “To pick up suddenly”; ketchup is a verb meaning “To cover with ketchup”.
What is the difference between catch up and ketchup?
| catch up | ketchup | |
|---|---|---|
| Part of speech | verb, noun | noun, verb |
| Meaning | To pick up suddenly To entangle (something) An act of catching up or attempting to catch up | To cover with ketchup |
| Example | The speaker wires have got caught up with the wires from the lights | tomato ketchup |
| Forms | none | ketchups, ketchupping, ketchupped |
| Pronunciation | /ˈkæt͡ʃ.ʌp/ /ˈkɛt͡ʃ.ʌp/ /ˈkæt͡ʃ.ɐp/ | /ˈkɛt͡ʃ.əp/ /ˈkɛt͡ʃ.ʌp/ /ˈkɛt͡ʃ.ʊp/ |
| In writing | not counted (the list counts single words) | 2.9 times per million words |
Sources: catch up and ketchup in the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
Every current meaning of catch up and ketchup
catch up
- 1
To pick up suddenly
- 2
Alternative spelling of catch-up
- 3
An act of catching up or attempting to catch up
- 4
To entangle (something)
The speaker wires have got caught up with the wires from the lights
- 5
An amount, a thing, or a receipt or repetition of information that enables one to catch up
- 6
To involve in (something); to embroil
That's why she got caught up in addiction
- 7
To be brought up to date with news
I hadn't seen her for so long. It was great to catch up
- 8
To bring (someone) up to date with the news
After Alice's vacation, her boss caught her up on policy changes
ketchup
- 1
CanadaUKUSEllipsis of tomato ketchup (“a tomato-vinegar-based sauce, sometimes containing spices, onion or garlic, and (especially in the US) sweeteners”)
tomato ketchup
- 2
To cover with ketchup
Source: the English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0); obsolete, archaic, dialect and rare senses left out.
Which is more common, catch up or ketchup?
catch up is a phrase, which the list of single words does not count; ketchup 2.9 times per million words.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).