When a person is ill because of cold, then we can say about him that
"He caught cold"
(in 1st p.: "I caught cold" or in modal "you can catch cold if you will not dress properly")
or
"He got cold"?
(in 1st p.: "I got cold" or in modal "you can get cold if you will not dress properly")
Normally I've used "got cold" but someone wrote me that she caught cold (she's not Native English speaker) and that's what brought me to ask my question here.
In addition, I would love to know about the usage of these phrases or corresponding phrases in in the main English speaking countries such as: US, Britain, Canada and Australia (AmE, BrE, CaE, AuE).
Best Answer
To "get cold" means to have your body temperature (or at least your perception of it) become enough lower that you feel somewhat uncomfortable. "Get/become cold" implies a lower temperature than "get/become chilly".
To "get a cold" means to become sick with a certain type of usually-minor illness, characterised by some or all of: coughing, sneezing, runny nose, headache, sore throat, etc. You can substitute either "catch cold" OR "catch a cold", the "catch" implying that it was accidental, whereas "get a cold" is just the raw information.
And the "if" part should be "...if you do not dress properly". Dress in this case is a reflexive idiom meaning "clothe yourself", so you can substitute "...if you do not clothe yourself properly/suitably/appropriately" or "...if you do not wear the proper/suitable/appropriate clothing".