1
as in escaped
to get free from a dangerous or confining situation
ran away from an unhappy marriage
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in retreated
to hasten away from something dangerous or frightening
the child runs away from large dogs
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of ran away
The Knicks, save for some frenetic Raptors rallies from down double-digits, weathered an early storm and ultimately ran away with a 111-95 victory in Toronto on Tuesday.
—
Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 4 Mar. 2026
After going into halftime down by a point, Washburn ran away from Fort-Smith in the second half and started another streak with an 81-53 victory.
—Pj Green, Kansas City Star, 27 Feb. 2026
The al-Roj camp also houses Shamima Begum, the London schoolgirl who ran away at the age of 15 to join ISIS in 2015 and was subsequently stripped of her British citizenship.
—Nadeen Ebrahim, CNN Money, 25 Feb. 2026
Before long, a confused Sage ran away from home.
—Time Staff, Time, 25 Feb. 2026
Oftebro, who ran away with gold in the normal and large hill individual events, teamed up with Andreas Skoglund to capture a third medal for the country that invented the sport.
—ABC News, 19 Feb. 2026
Otis eventually ran away with a 21-9 major decision.
—Steve Millar, Chicago Tribune, 19 Feb. 2026
Dez Bryant hauled in six passes and 158 yards for two touchdowns in the first half alone as Dallas ran away from the Jags for a 31-17 victory.
—Sportsday Staff, Dallas Morning News, 6 Feb. 2026
The student supposedly ran away from Wright and tried to hide under the bleachers.
—Garfield Hylton, The Orlando Sentinel, 6 Feb. 2026
Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 4 Mar. 2026
After going into halftime down by a point, Washburn ran away from Fort-Smith in the second half and started another streak with an 81-53 victory.
—Pj Green, Kansas City Star, 27 Feb. 2026
The al-Roj camp also houses Shamima Begum, the London schoolgirl who ran away at the age of 15 to join ISIS in 2015 and was subsequently stripped of her British citizenship.
—Nadeen Ebrahim, CNN Money, 25 Feb. 2026
Before long, a confused Sage ran away from home.
—Time Staff, Time, 25 Feb. 2026
Oftebro, who ran away with gold in the normal and large hill individual events, teamed up with Andreas Skoglund to capture a third medal for the country that invented the sport.
—ABC News, 19 Feb. 2026
Otis eventually ran away with a 21-9 major decision.
—Steve Millar, Chicago Tribune, 19 Feb. 2026
Dez Bryant hauled in six passes and 158 yards for two touchdowns in the first half alone as Dallas ran away from the Jags for a 31-17 victory.
—Sportsday Staff, Dallas Morning News, 6 Feb. 2026
The student supposedly ran away from Wright and tried to hide under the bleachers.
—Garfield Hylton, The Orlando Sentinel, 6 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ran away
Verb
-
See how the horny hockey show escaped the criticism and did what its contemporaries cannot.—
CNN Money,
CNN Money,
5 Mar. 2026
-
Ejecta thrown up by the impact would mostly have rained back down onto the surface of the moon, but millions of pounds of debris would have still escaped the lunar gravity and fallen towards Earth instead, possibly creating a unique meteor shower lasting a few days.—
Keith Cooper,
Space.com,
5 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
On her island home in the South Pacific archipelago of Vanuatu, the shoreline has visibly retreated within her short lifetime, with beaches eroded, coastal trees uprooted and some homes now barely 3 feet from the sea at high tide.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
5 Mar. 2026
-
The real horror in Frankenstein was a brilliant man who unleashed power and retreated from accountability.—
Tom Debley,
Mercury News,
5 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The city fell into mayhem as panicked residents fled.—
Rania Abouzeid,
New Yorker,
5 Mar. 2026
-
As officers approached the scene, a man fled the area in a Ford with others in the vehicle, Wright said.—
Justin Muszynski,
Hartford Courant,
5 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
As the attacker ran off, the younger victim helped the older man to his feet, with straphangers helping both get back onto the platform.—
Rocco Parascandola,
New York Daily News,
9 Mar. 2026
-
The Acura ran off the side of the road and collided with a traffic light and some private property, police said.—
City News Service,
Daily News,
9 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Center Tyler Linderbaum, who made the Pro Bowl three times in four years after the Ravens picked him in the first round in 2022, bolted to Las Vegas.—
Jeff Zrebiec,
New York Times,
10 Mar. 2026
-
Ye bolted at the door, stopping only a couple of seconds at the sidewalk to sign a pair of sneakers for a fan who’d been waiting outside all day.—
Nancy Dillon,
Rolling Stone,
6 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Shelia told investigators that after the girls stopped the car, Skylar got out following a disagreement.—
Isabella Wandermurem,
Time,
6 Mar. 2026
-
Fidel Castro got out of the jeep.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
21 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
Ben Wang delivers a breakthrough performance in the title role as a kid who tries to conquer his anxiety issues head-on by running for class president.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
12 Mar. 2026
-
That significantly lowers the bill for users running OpenClaw.—
Evelyn Cheng,Dylan Butts,
CNBC,
12 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Ran away.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ran%20away. Accessed 12 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
