catch up with

What it means

To reach the same level, position, or progress as someone or something else after falling behind. It is also used socially to mean meeting a friend to share recent news, and is inseparable.

Examples

• She studied hard to catch up with the rest of her class.
• Let's catch up with each other over coffee next week.
• Their technology has finally caught up with the industry leaders.
• I'm still trying to catch up with all the emails from last week.

Where it comes from

A natural extension of literal 'catching up' in a race or chase, used figuratively since the 1800s. The social sense ('let's catch up') became especially popular in the late 20th century.

Related phrasal verbs