in the act
1. As one is doing something. The police caught the robbers in the act of ransacking another house. I suspected that my friend was stealing money from me, and then I caught her in the act. Ah, our doorbell camera caught someone in the act! Look at this guy stealing our packages!
2. slang While having sexual intercourse. Can you believe I caught my husband in the act with another woman? A: "Wait, you caught them in the act?" B: "Yep, my boyfriend and my best friend. I can't believe they would betray me like that!" Stop, stop! Someone's coming, and if it's my mom, I'd really rather she didn't catch us in the act!
Farlex Dictionary of Idioms. © 2024 Farlex, Inc, all rights reserved.
in the act (of doing something)
while doing something. There he was, in the act of opening the door. I tripped while in the act of climbing.
McGraw-Hill Dictionary of American Idioms and Phrasal Verbs. © 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc.
in the act
1. In the process of doing something. For example, The police caught the robber in the act, or I was in the act of closing the window. [Second half of 1600s]
2. Performing sexual intercourse, as in Her father caught them in the act. [Late 1500s]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. Copyright © 2003, 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.