catch up — talk about recent news
phrasal verbB1IELTS 5+informalcommon
To talk to someone you haven't seen for a while and share recent news or updates about your lives.
Say it like a native
Textbook We should reconvene to exchange recent personal updates.
Native We should catch up soon.
'Catch up' is exactly how friends suggest meeting to share news; the formal paraphrase is bizarre between friends.
Pattern: catch up (with someone)
In use
- Let's grab coffee this weekend and catch up—it's been ages since we talked.family
- When I visit my hometown, I always catch up with old friends to hear about what's new in their lives.IELTS speaking
Common mistake
✗ Let's catch up the news.
✓ Let's catch up. / Let's catch up on the news.
'Catch up' (with a person) or 'catch up ON' news/work — not 'catch up the news'.
Common collocations
catch up + social— with friends, over coffee, soon, on the news
Don't confuse it
Different from 'meet up,' which means to get together but not necessarily to talk about recent events.
Related
- catch up (reach the same level) — Another meaning of 'catch up' is 'reach the same level'; compare the examples to keep the meanings separate.