1
as in ejected
to drive or force out
the dog often ran off cats and other animals that had intruded upon his owner's property
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in escaped
to get free from a dangerous or confining situation
their rebellious daughter's run off because she was disciplined again
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in retreated
to hasten away from something dangerous or frightening
the mouse ran off as soon as it saw us
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 off
The attacker, a man dressed in black, ran off and is being sought.
—
Rocco Parascandola, New York Daily News, 16 Mar. 2026
Yale led 19-16 then ran off six consecutive points to go ahead 25-16 with about 8 1/2 minutes left in the first half.
—CBS News, 15 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
West Virginia led 56-43 with 90 seconds left before TCU ran off seven straight points to provide some hope.
—Dallas Morning News, 8 Mar. 2026
Winger Jacob Stockdale ran off the shoulder of midfielder Stuart McCloskey, his Ulster clubmate, to score his first test try since 2021.
—ABC News, 6 Mar. 2026
For an unknown reason, the vehicle ran off the roadway right and struck a sign and a fence, FHP said.
—Elainie Barraza, The Orlando Sentinel, 1 Mar. 2026
In the novel, Spade and partner Miles Archer are private investigators who accept a case from a woman hoping to find her sister, who ran off with a mysterious man.
—David L. Coddon, San Diego Union-Tribune, 27 Feb. 2026
Conner also only got a glance at the man who ran off for no more than two seconds.
—Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 26 Feb. 2026
Rocco Parascandola, New York Daily News, 16 Mar. 2026
Yale led 19-16 then ran off six consecutive points to go ahead 25-16 with about 8 1/2 minutes left in the first half.
—CBS News, 15 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
West Virginia led 56-43 with 90 seconds left before TCU ran off seven straight points to provide some hope.
—Dallas Morning News, 8 Mar. 2026
Winger Jacob Stockdale ran off the shoulder of midfielder Stuart McCloskey, his Ulster clubmate, to score his first test try since 2021.
—ABC News, 6 Mar. 2026
For an unknown reason, the vehicle ran off the roadway right and struck a sign and a fence, FHP said.
—Elainie Barraza, The Orlando Sentinel, 1 Mar. 2026
In the novel, Spade and partner Miles Archer are private investigators who accept a case from a woman hoping to find her sister, who ran off with a mysterious man.
—David L. Coddon, San Diego Union-Tribune, 27 Feb. 2026
Conner also only got a glance at the man who ran off for no more than two seconds.
—Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 26 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for ran off
Verb
-
How do key components of matter — gas, dust, and heavy elements — flow into, get transported throughout, and ejected out of galaxies over time?—
Big Think,
Big Think,
11 Mar. 2026
-
Both were ejected from the motorcycle.—
Anne Gelhaus,
Mercury News,
11 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Nikki and Scott Hanger also barely escaped the tornado’s path, their daughter-in-law Jill Hanger said Wednesday afternoon.—
Alexandra Kukulka,
Chicago Tribune,
12 Mar. 2026
-
The two children, ages 10 and 8, escaped the March 2 encounter in the 17000 block of County Road 97 and told their parents, who called authorities, sheriff’s officials said.—
Darrell Smith,
Sacbee.com,
12 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, has retreated from the near-$120 per barrel seen earlier in the week, as the International Energy Agency agreed on Wednesday to release a record 400 million barrels of oil from its emergency reserves.—
Hugh Leask,
CNBC,
12 Mar. 2026
-
O’Brien has not retreated from public life.—
Hanna Wickes,
Charlotte Observer,
12 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Some—too many—dismissed Redzepi’s thirty-odd accusers entirely, seemingly out of a belief that enduring violence is just what kitchen life entails, and that those who want to make it as chefs need to suck it up.—
Helen Rosner,
New Yorker,
15 Mar. 2026
-
How important for this lucrative but often-dismissed genre?—
Daniel Arkin,
NBC news,
15 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Between 600,000 and 1 million households have been displaced within the country, most of which have fled from Tehran and other urban areas and gone to the north or to rural areas, the agency said.—
Bart Jansen,
USA Today,
13 Mar. 2026
-
After losing the Chinese Civil War to Mao and his Communist forces, the Nationalist government and its supporters fled in 1949 to the island of Taiwan and continued to rule as the Republic of China’s government in exile.—
Timothy Nerozzi,
The Washington Examiner,
13 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The new season sees Reid's Lestat de Lioncourt living the rockstar life, as vampires have been outed by author Daniel Molloy (Eric Bobosian) in his book that interviews Louis de Pointe du Lac (Jacob Anderson).—
Debbie Day,
Entertainment Weekly,
13 Mar. 2026
-
White segregationists and liberals have outed Black people as deviant to maintain their claims to normalcy and socioeconomic dominance.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
24 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
But the Cyclones reversed course, battled back and ran away with a 75-53 victory.—
Blair Kerkhoff,
Kansas City Star,
13 Mar. 2026
-
Garcia-Espinal allegedly ran away as police were called and evaded police until last month.—
Jeramie Bizzle,
CBS News,
12 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
Cite this Entry
“Ran off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/ran%20off. Accessed 18 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
