run out

verb

ran out; run out; running out; runs out
Synonyms of run outnext

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
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
As the clock continues to tick, the days before Christmas are running out. Chierstin Roth, CBS News, 20 Dec. 2025 Toward the end of the game, the ESPN sportscaster Kirk Herbstreit, evidently having run out of things to say, put his headset on his golden retriever, an emotional support dog named Peter. Paige Williams, New Yorker, 19 Dec. 2025 The Wisconsin Deafblind Project supports 170 children, from birth to age 21 — and although the program was able to secure another year of funding from the National Center on Deafblindness, that money is set to run out by next fall, the Times reported. Sam Gillette, PEOPLE, 19 Dec. 2025 Unless the soil is already soaked, water the poinsettia until water runs out of the bottom of the pot. Brandee Gruener, Southern Living, 19 Dec. 2025 See All Example Sentences for run out

Word History

First Known Use

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

Time Traveler
The first known use of run out was in the 14th century

Cite this Entry

“Run out.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/run%20out. Accessed 20 Dec. 2025.

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

More from Merriam-Webster on run out

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