run out

verb

ran out; run out; running out; runs out

intransitive verb

1

a

: to come to an end : expire

time ran out

b

: to become exhausted or used up

the gasoline ran out

2

: to jut out

transitive verb

1

a

: to finish out (a course, a series, a contest, etc.) : complete

b

of a baseball batter : to run hard to first base after hitting (a batted ball)

ran out the grounder

2

a

: to fill out (a typeset line) with quads, leaders, or ornaments

b

: to set (a line of text, such as the first line of a paragraph) with a hanging indention

3

: to exhaust (oneself) in running

4

: to cause to leave by force or coercion : expel

see also:

run out of run out on

Examples of run out in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The British government acknowledged Saturday that legislation to ratify the agreement for the islands in the Indian Ocean has run out of time in Parliament. —ABC News, 11 Apr. 2026

But when Bailey ran out into the street, the car swerved to avoid hitting her and struck Kate instead. —Max Gao, Variety, 11 Apr. 2026

In the second quarter, Carter and Clifford scored 10 points apiece to help the Kings run out to a 15-point lead. —Jason Anderson, Sacbee.com, 11 Apr. 2026

In 2023, the project's funding ran out, says Mahamat Ali, the local operator who oversaw the work. —Julie Bourdin, NPR, 11 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a

Rhymes for run out

• about
• bailout
• blackout
• blowout
• breakout
• burnout
• buyout
• checkout
• closeout
• cutout
• devout
• dropout

Kids Definition

run out

verb

1

: to come to an end : expire

time ran out before we could tie the game

2

: to become exhausted or used up

our supplies were running out