From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishcatch at something phrasal verbHOLDto try to take hold of something She caught at his arm, ‘Hang on. I’m coming with you.’ → catch→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
catch at • In this way there is less chance of being caught at a disadvantage or being ambushed by circumstances.• But the presence of a lot of barbel is not the only reason why large numbers can be caught at a sitting.• She heard him catch at air, and cough up the last slime of the river.• Such small tumors are often caught at an earlier, more curable stage.• But it is not only trout that I have caught at Coldingham.• He had merely been caught at it, that was all, or half way caught at it.• He completed passes to nine different Seahawks, with seven of them catching at least two.• It works so well at San Pablo that more trout are stocked and caught at this lake than any other in California. 