[run] vb ran also chiefly dial run ; run ; run.ning [ME ronnen, alter. of rinnen, v.i. (fr. OE iernan, rinnan & ON rinna) & of rennen, v.t., fr. ON renna; akin to OHG rinnan, v.i., to run, Skt rinati he causes to flow, and prob. to L rivus stream] vi (bef. 12c) 1 a: to go faster than a walk; specif: to go steadily by springing steps so that both feet leave the ground for an instant in each step b of a horse: to move at a fast gallop c: flee, retreat, escape "dropped the gun and ran" d: to utilize a running play on offense--used of a football team
2. a: to go without restraint: move freely about at will "let chickens ~ loose" b: to keep company: consort "a ram running with ewes" "ran with a wild crowd when he was young" c: to sail before the wind in distinction from reaching or sailing close-hauled d: roam, rove "running about with no overcoat" 3 a: to go rapidly or hurriedly: hasten "~ and fetch the doctor" b: to go in urgency or distress: resort "~s to mother at every little difficulty" c: to make a quick, easy, or casual trip or visit "ran over to borrow some sugar"
4. a: to contend in a race b: to enter into an election contest
5. a: to move on or as if on wheels: glide "file drawers running on ball bearings" b: to roll forward rapidly or freely c: to pass or slide freely "a rope ~s through the pulley" d: to ravel lengthwise "stockings guaranteed not to ~"
6: to sing or play a musical passage quickly "~ up the scale"
7. a: to go back and forth: ply "the train ~s between New York and Washington" b of fish: to migrate or move in considerable numbers; esp: to move up or down a river to spawn
8. a: turn, rotate "a swiftly running grindstone" b: function, operate "the engine ~s on gasoline"
9. a (1): to continue in force, operation, or production "the contract has two more years to ~" "the play ran for six months" (2): to have a specified duration, extent, or length "the manuscript ~s nearly 500 pages" b: to accompany as a valid obligation or right "a right-of-way that ~s with the land" c: to continue to accrue or become payable "interest on the loan ~s from July 1st" 10: to pass from one state to another "~ into debt" 11 a: to flow rapidly or under pressure b: melt, fuse c: spread, dissolve "colors guaranteed not to ~" d: to discharge pus or serum "a running sore" 12 a: to develop rapidly in some speci : to meet with or discover by chance -- run a fever or run a temperature : to have a fever -- run after 1: pursue, chase; esp: to seek the company of
2: to take up with: follow "run after new theories" -- run against 1: to meet suddenly or unexpectedly
2: to work or take effect unfavorably to: disfavor, oppose -- run foul of 1: to collide with "ran foul of a hidden reef"
2: to come into conflict with "run foul of the law" -- run into 1 a: to change or transform into: become b: to merge with c: to mount up to "their yearly income often runs into six figures"
2. a: to collide with b: to meet by chance "ran into an old classmate the other day" -- run low on : to approach running out of "running low on options" -- run rings around : to show marked superiority over: defeat decisively or overwhelmingly -- run riot 1: to act wildly or without restraint
2: to occur in profusion "daffodils running riot" -- run short : to become insufficient -- run short of : to use up: run low on -- run to : to mount up to "the book runs to 500 pages" -- run upon : to run across: meet with usage The past tense run still survives in speech in southern England and in the speech esp. of older people in some parts of the U.S. It was formerly used in literature, and was a standard variant in our dictionaries from 1828 until 1934. Grammarians have generally opposed it, and many people consider it nonstandard. Just about everybody uses ran in writing now.
[2]run n (14c) 1 a: an act or the action of running: continued rapid movement b: a quickened gallop c: a migration of fish (as up or down a river) esp. to spawn; also: such fish in the process of migration d: a running race "a mile ~" e: a score made in baseball by a runner reaching home plate safely f: strength or ability to run g: a gain of a usu. specified distance made on a running play in football "scored on a 25-yard ~"; also: a running play h: a sustained usu. aggressive effort (as to win or obtain something) "making a ~ at the championship"
2. a chiefly Midland: creek
2. b: something that flows in the course of an operation or during a particular time "the first ~ of sap in sugar maples" 3 a: the stern of the underwater body of a ship from where it begins to curve or slope upward and inward b: the direction in which a vein of ore lies c: a direction of secondary or minor cleavage: grain "the ~ of a mass of granite" d: a horizontal distance (as that covered by a flight of steps) e: general tendency or direction
4: a continuous period or series esp. of things of identical or similar sort "a ~ of bad luck": as a: a rapid passage up or down a scale in vocal or instrumental music b: a number of rapid small dance steps executed in even tempo c: the act of making successively a number of successful shots or strokes; also: the score thus made "a ~ of 20 in billiards" d: an unbroken course of performances or showings e: a set of consecutive measurements, readings, or observations f: persistent and heavy demands from depositors, creditors, or customers "a ~ on a bank" g: sequence 2b
5: the quantity of work turned out in a continuous operation "a press ~ of 10,000 copies"
6: the usual or normal kind, character, type, or group "the average ~ of students"
7. a: the distance covered in a period of continuous traveling or sailing b: a course or trip esp. if mapped out and traveled with regularity c: a news reporter's regular territory: beat d: freedom of movement in or access to a place or area "has the ~ of the house"
8. a: the period during which a machine or plant is in continuous operation b: the use of machinery for a single set of processing procedures "a computer ~"
9. a: a way, track, or path frequented by animals b: an enclosure for domestic animals where they may feed or exercise c Austral (1): a large area of land used for grazing "a sheep ~" (2): ranch, station "run-holder" d: an inclined passageway
10. a: an inclined course (as for skiing or bobsledding) b1: in haste: without pausing "ate lunch on the run"
2: in r etreat: in flight (as from the law) "an escaped convict on the run" [3]run adj (1774) 1 a: being in a melted state "~ butter" b: made from molten material: cast in a mold "~ metal"
2. of fish: having made a migration or spawning run "a fresh ~ salmon"
3: exhausted or winded from running