catch step

Definitions

1. 1

   To match the pace (of another person or a beat).

   • Confronted by the beloved music of the South, the old veterans broke into cheers as they left their trains, and unconsciously caught step in time with the music.
2. 2

   To change so as to function harmoniously with

   To change so as to function harmoniously with; fit in.

   • And so the pageant moves on and you and I now catch step and for a short time will play our part in making the pattern of the Federation of this day.
   • It was a wonderfully happy day, and I want you to catch step with your comrades, and let bickerings and anger and hatred all fall away in our love for God's good sunshine and love for this great Republic.
   • Speakers sometimes fail to "catch step" with the camp experiences; no speaker should be brought in for the last evening who has not shared with campers all week in their fun as well as their more serious moments.
3. 3

   To adjust to advances in circumstances or criteria

   To adjust to advances in circumstances or criteria; catch up.

   • The quickest way to get acquainted with these new conditions is to have them slap us in the face. Wait till we all catch step again, and then watch this country.
   • I had now to take myself over, a going concern, and try to catch step with a swift-moving and clamorous world.
   • By organized effort, farmers were struggling to catch step with the economy – so Dr. Taylor argues.
4. ›+ 2 more definitionsshow fewer

   1. 4

      A step in which one foot meets the other foot without passing it and the weight shifts to…

      A step in which one foot meets the other foot without passing it and the weight shifts to the foot that just moved.

      • Frequently the patient, after taking a series of normal steps, suddenly takes a very long step with one leg and a catch step with the other, pauses a moment, and then proceeds to walk normally.
      • The uneven long–short rhythm of the gallop is the same as that of the slide, the first phase of the movement being a slow step and the second a quick catch step.
   2. 5

      A pause in order to assimilate new information.

      • The interpreter took a catch step before it translated what he'd said, and Kivrin felt a fleeting surprise that she couldn't understand him.

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