catch vs check

catch

verb
  • To be held back or impeded. 

  • To attract and hold (a faculty or organ of sense). 

  • To grasp mentally: perceive and understand. 

  • To unpleasantly discover unexpectedly; to unpleasantly surprise (someone doing something). 

  • To acquire, as though by infection; to take on through sympathy or infection. 

  • To make a grasping or snatching motion (at). 

  • To take or replenish something necessary, such as breath or sleep. 

  • Of fire, to spread or be conveyed to. 

  • To get pregnant. 

  • To end a player's innings by catching a hit ball before the first bounce. 

  • To be the victim of (something unpleasant, painful etc.). 

  • To entrap or trip up a person; to deceive. 

  • To reach (someone) with a strike, blow, weapon etc. 

  • To be hit by something. 

  • To receive or be affected by (wind, water, fire etc.). 

  • To have something be held back or impeded. 

  • To contact a wave in such a way that one can ride it back to shore. 

  • To travel by means of. 

  • To become infected by (an illness). 

  • To reproduce or echo a spirit or idea faithfully. 

  • To serve well or poorly for catching, especially for catching fish. 

  • To seize or intercept an object moving through the air (or, sometimes, some other medium). 

  • To grip (the water) with one's oars at the beginning of the stroke. 

  • To become pregnant. (Only in past tense or as participle.) 

  • To charm or entrance. 

  • To grip or entangle. 

  • To handle an exception. 

  • To play (a specific period of time) as the catcher. 

  • To spread by infection or similar means. 

  • To take in; to watch or listen to (an entertainment). 

  • To engage with some mechanism; to stick, to succeed in interacting with something or initiating some process. 

  • To capture or snare (someone or something which would rather escape). 

  • To germinate and set down roots. 

  • To be touched or affected by (something) through exposure. 

  • To overtake or catch up to; to be in time for. 

noun
  • The act of noticing, understanding or hearing. 

  • A crick; a sudden muscle pain during unaccustomed positioning when the muscle is in use. 

  • A stopping mechanism, especially a clasp which stops something from opening. 

  • The game of catching a ball. 

  • A hesitation in voice, caused by strong emotion. 

  • A find, in particular a boyfriend or girlfriend or prospective spouse. 

  • A fragment of music or poetry. 

  • The act of catching a hit ball before it reaches the ground, resulting in an out. 

  • Passing opportunities seized; snatches. 

  • The act of catching an object in motion, especially a ball. 

  • The act of seizing or capturing. 

  • A type of humorous round in which the voices gradually catch up with one another; usually sung by men and often having bawdy lyrics. 

  • A slight remembrance; a trace. 

  • A crop which has germinated and begun to grow. 

  • The first contact of an oar with the water. 

  • A concealed difficulty, especially in a deal or negotiation. 

  • A player in respect of his catching ability; particularly one who catches well. 

  • A stoppage of breath, resembling a slight cough. 

  • The refrain; a line or lines of a song which are repeated from verse to verse. 

  • Something which is captured or caught. 

check

verb
  • To act as a curb or restraint. 

  • To inspect; to examine. 

  • To leave with a shipping agent for shipping. 

  • To verify the accuracy of a text or translation, usually making some corrections (proofread) or many (copyedit). 

  • To turn, when in pursuit of proper game, and fly after other birds. 

  • To pass or bounce the ball to an opponent from behind the three-point line and have the opponent pass or bounce it back to start play. 

  • To make a move which puts an adversary's king in check; to put in check. 

  • To crack or gape open, as wood in drying; or to crack in small checks, as varnish, paint, etc. 

  • To disrupt another player with the stick or body to obtain possession of the ball or puck. 

  • To chide, rebuke, or reprove. 

  • To announce that one is remaining in a hand without betting. 

  • To verify or compare with a source of information. 

  • To leave in safekeeping. 

  • To control, limit, or halt. 

  • To mark items on a list (with a checkmark or by crossing them out) that have been chosen for keeping or removal or that have been dealt with (for example, completed or verified as correct or satisfactory). 

  • To slack or ease off, as a brace which is too stiffly extended. 

  • To make checks or chinks in; to cause to crack. 

  • To make a stop; to pause; with at. 

  • To mark with a check pattern. 

adj
  • Divided into small squares (chequers) by transverse vertical and horizontal lines. 

noun
  • The forsaking by a hawk of its proper game to follow other birds. 

  • A maneuver performed by a player to take another player out of the play. 

  • Any fabric woven with such a pattern. 

  • A situation in which the king is directly threatened by an opposing piece. 

  • A mark (especially a checkmark: ✓) used as an indicator. 

  • A bill, particularly in a restaurant. 

  • A control; a limit or stop. 

  • An inspection or examination. 

  • A small chink or crack. 

  • A lengthwise separation through the growth rings in wood. 

  • An order to a bank to pay money to a named person or entity. 

  • A mark, certificate, or token by which errors may be prevented, or a thing or person may be identified. 

  • A pattern made up of a grid of squares of alternating colors; a checkered pattern. 

  • A token used instead of cash in gaming machines, or in gambling generally. 

How often have the words catch and check occurred in a corpus of books? (source: Google Ngram Viewer )