running away 1 of 2

noun

as in leaving

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running away

2 of 2

verb

present participle of run away
1
as in escaping
to get free from a dangerous or confining situation ran away from an unhappy marriage

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in retreating
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 running away
Verb
Roo, who was microchipped, had recently been adopted before getting spooked and running away. — Kat Filardi, USA Today, 1 Aug. 2026 Surveillance video, however, shows Harris running away as Hicks shoots at him. — Grethel Aguila, Miami Herald, 23 July 2026 The rescue comes as shelters across the region prepare for an influx of stray pets following Fourth of July celebrations, when fireworks often frighten dogs into running away from home. — Moná Thomas, PEOPLE, 16 July 2026 According to court records, Sevey allegedly began shooting at a group of four people running away, wounding a male juvenile in the leg. — Harry Harris, Mercury News, 15 July 2026 On Saturday, July 4, the Kansas City, Kansas, Fire Department rescued a dog that had fallen into a well after running away scared from the sound of fireworks. — Emily Harter, Kansas City Star, 6 July 2026 Crews were back out on Saturday to search for a man who Elgin police said was running away with a large knife and went into the Fox River after an incident Friday morning. — Elyssa Kaufman, CBS News, 27 June 2026 The bear bit through flesh and bone, dragging him for about 20 feet before dropping him and running away. — Sonja Sharp, Los Angeles Times, 7 June 2026 Woman faceplants running away from bison. — David Hookstead Outkick, FOXNews.com, 1 June 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for running away
  1. leaving
  2. escaping
  3. retreating
  4. departure
  5. fleeing
  6. flying
  7. going
  8. getting out
Noun
  • Why leaving room for changes matters Weather, closures and travel delays can rewrite an itinerary overnight.
    — Ashley Lynch, Kansas City Star, 3 Aug. 2026
  • There have been other senior exec exits, with All3 COO Sara Geater and Group Director of Corporate Development Steven Brown leaving.
    — Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 21 July 2026
Definition of leaving
Verb
  • NurPhoto via Getty Images Anthropic has quietly joined the frontier labs designing their own chips, a shift driven less by escaping Nvidia than by the arithmetic of serving billions of tokens a day.
    — Jon Markman, Forbes.com, 6 Aug. 2026
  • The alcohol-burning products were associated with 31 reports of flame jettings and flames escaping from the concrete container, resulting in 19 burn injuries.
    — Ruben Vives, Los Angeles Times, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of escaping
Verb
  • Record-low water levels along the Danube River have exposed dozens of German military shipwrecks near the Serbian town of Prahovo, where an estimated 200 vessels were deliberately scuttled by retreating Nazi forces in 1944.
    — Kaif Shaikh, Interesting Engineering, 4 Aug. 2026
  • Surveillance video recovered by police showed the two men fighting in an alley and then Britt retreating from Fitzsimmons, according to the charging document.
    — Meredith Deliso, ABC News, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of retreating
Noun
  • At 11/2, Liverpool are third-favourites to win the 2026/27 Premier League title, reflecting how much talent is still at the club even after the departure of some key figures.
    — Graham Ruthven, New York Times, 7 Aug. 2026
  • Sacramento Regional Transit will adjust six bus routes beginning Sunday, including delaying departure times and eliminating one early-morning trip from Florin.
    — Madison Smalstig, Sacbee.com, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of departure
Verb
  • Drones struck the nearby town of Al-Burj Al-Shamali, which was subsequently hit by a strike from a fighter jet, NNA said on Thursday, adding that people were seen fleeing toward Tyre.
    — Todd Symons, CNN Money, 6 Aug. 2026
  • Then, one of the men can be seen pulling out a gun, shooting at the influencer and immediately fleeing the scene.
    — Jessica Schladebeck, New York Daily News, 5 Aug. 2026
Definition of fleeing
Verb
  • Flights at Germany's Leipzig/Halle Airport, a major cargo hub, were disrupted during the night after a sighting of a flying object was reported and another object was found near a runway, police said Wednesday.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 5 Aug. 2026
  • As a result, the squad were much further down the fitness road in the States, helped by playing two friendlies against Wisla Krakow and Manchester United before flying out.
    — Richard Sutcliffe, New York Times, 4 Aug. 2026
Definition of flying
Noun
  • Getting pushed out in the merger is old boss Terrence (Elijah Cook), who commiserates at a going-away party that night with Aubrey (Claudia Doumit), the coworker David has a potential romantic frisson with.
    — Dennis Harvey, Variety, 5 Aug. 2026
  • An array of pillars, permanent marks, the imposing Napoleonic-era Spitbank Fort, as well as the comings-and-goings of ferries and even the hovercraft going back and forth between Portsmouth and the Isle of Wight.
    — Andrew Rice, New York Times, 26 July 2026
Definition of going
Verb
  • So, just getting out here, spreading the love of the game, and having some fun doing it.
    — Scott Thompson, FOXNews.com, 4 Aug. 2026
  • For many actors, getting into character isn’t as big of a problem as getting out of one.
    — Bethy Squires, Vulture, 22 July 2026
Definition of getting out

Browse Nearby Words

running amok
running away
running by
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Cite this Entry

“Running away.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/running%20away. Accessed 9 Aug. 2026.

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Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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