English · Idiom Attested

catch a cold

In real, traceable use. Part of the curated seed collection; community review is coming.

Both English Tiếng Việt

Meaning · English

Encounter trouble.

Nghĩa · Tiếng Việt

gặp rắc rối

Machine-translated — suggest a fix

Where it’s used: Used Widespread English

Examples

Has a woman who knew herself to be well dressed ever caught a cold?

I think I might have caught a cold.’

British National Corpus sentence via the MAGPIE corpus (CC BY 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-30)

Sources & notes

Listed in Wiktionary’s “English idioms” category (retrieved 2026-07-29); definition pending editorial review. Figurative class: Euphemism (PIE-English corpus, CC BY 4.0, retrieved 2026-07-31).

Equivalents & related

Near equivalent bị cảm (verb) to catch a cold, to be ill Tiếng Việt Near equivalent làm cảm (verb) to catch a cold Tiếng Việt Near equivalent phải gió (verb) to catch a cold and faint Tiếng Việt

Common questions

What does “catch a cold” mean?

Encounter trouble.

Is “catch a cold” formal or informal?

No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.

What is the closest equivalent?

“bị cảm” (Tiếng Việt) — near equivalent.