runs 1 of 2

present tense third-person singular of run
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2
3
as in leads
to be positioned along a certain course or in a certain direction the road runs along the river for a while

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4
as in varies
to occur within a continuous range of variation the electric bill runs between 30 and 50 dollars a month

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5
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as in tends
to show a liking or proneness (for something) unfortunately, members of his family run to fatness

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

8
as in drives
to urge, push, or force onward they ran the horses hard in order to get to the ranch quickly

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9
as in operates
to control the mechanical operation of I know how to run that machine

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10
as in becomes
to eventually have as a state or quality the poor woman ran herself ragged trying to care for all those children

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as in costs
to have a price of that sort of computer runs at least several hundred dollars

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runs

2 of 2

noun

plural of run
as in diarrhea
abnormally frequent intestinal evacuations with more or less fluid stools with weekend guests in the house, it was no time to get the runs

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 runs
Verb
Jeff Stotts, an athletic trainer who runs a site that tracks sports injuries, wrote that since 2005, just one player had sustained a torn labrum like Wallace’s and returned later that season. — Andrew Greif, NBC news, 29 Oct. 2026 Brodeur, 51, of Sanford, runs a consulting firm, Anchor Consulting LLC, and was the previous president and CEO of the Seminole County Chamber. — Martin E. Comas, The Orlando Sentinel, 29 Oct. 2026 The Tokyo Gap-Financing Market runs as part of TIFFCOM, the content market attached to the Tokyo International Film Festival. — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 28 Oct. 2026 The city is moving forward with a major redesign of Third Avenue in Sunset Park, which has six lanes of moving traffic, long crosswalks and runs right underneath the elevated Gowanus Expressway. — Elijah Westbrook, CBS News, 28 Oct. 2026 In a few spots, the data center property runs right up against beautiful two-story homes. — Andrea Hsu, NPR, 28 Oct. 2026 The event runs for four weekends (November 27–December 20 this year). — Dashae Engler, Midwest Living, 28 Oct. 2026 Blacksmith, a startup that runs the infrastructure companies use to test code before it ships, has been valued at $1 billion following a new $66 million funding round led by Sequoia Capital. — Beatrice Nolan, Fortune, 21 Oct. 2026 Inspired by her experience, Purdie now shares her story on social media and runs a community called IVF Sisterhood in hopes of encouraging other women with fertility issues, especially those going through IVF past the age of 45. — Jessica Poitevien, Condé Nast Traveler, 21 Oct. 2026
Noun
Heli and bike skiing expeditions take place across 17 peaks over 800 diverse runs, the highest at 2,585m above sea level. — Luke Abrahams, Vogue, 27 Oct. 2026 The Brewers became the first team to score eight runs with two outs in a World Series inning, and Booser allowed four of those runs. — Ryan Canfield Outkick, FOXNews.com, 27 Oct. 2026 Offensive Player of the Week Senior running back Wyatt Gregory led Sandwich to a 57-12 win Friday over Lisle in the 4A opening round, going for 149 yards on six carries with TD runs of 60, 45 and 25 yards. — Rick Armstrong, Chicago Tribune, 27 Oct. 2026 Gordon again ran hard Sunday, fueling Miami’s first TD drive with a 25-yard scamper and finishing with 103 yards on 25 carries (including a touchdown) and helping seal the game with runs of 14 and 7 yards to begin Miami’s final possession. — Barry Jackson, Miami Herald, 26 Oct. 2026 Reserve the most extensive suites for pre-merge or pre-deploy regression runs. — Jeff An, Forbes.com, 26 Oct. 2026 Both those seven consecutive two-out hits and eight two-out runs were World Series records. — Hannah Keyser, CNN Money, 26 Oct. 2026 The Guardians wouldn’t give up and had the go-ahead run at first base in the eighth when Kevin Kelly struck out Brayan Rocchio to leave the bases loaded after two runs scored. — Los Angeles Times, 20 Oct. 2026 Each of the previous two seasons have specific moments that led to those runs. — Steven Johnson, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 20 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for runs
Verb
  • When a review begins, the referee jogs straight to a pitchside monitor.
    — Henry Bushnell, New York Times, 16 Sep. 2026
  • First inning, Shohei Ohtani walks, steals second, jogs to third on a single by Freddie Freeman, scores on a grounder by Mookie Betts.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 24 Aug. 2026
Verb
  • Jaros and Rauh calculate that the state will lose money so long as 24 percent of the tax base flees, a condition that’s already been met.
    — Ramesh Ponnuru, Washington Post, 27 Oct. 2026
  • Moss flees across the Mexican border, hiding the money along the bank of the Rio Grande before winding up in a Mexican hospital.
    — Frannie Comstock, Encyclopedia Britannica, 23 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Macron can’t seek a third consecutive term, and far-right leader Marine Le Pen leads polling for the first round of the presidential election on April 18.
    — Thomas Adamson, Los Angeles Times, 27 Oct. 2026
  • Cooper has led wire-to-wire over Republican opponent Michael Whatley, maintaining wide polling and fundraising leads and forcing key GOP super PACs to pause spending in the race to focus elsewhere.
    — Mabinty Quarshie, The Washington Examiner, 26 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • The insurance bill for the restaurant varies by month, depending on the claims employees file.
    — Jen Christensen, CNN Money, 24 Oct. 2026
  • This timeframe varies based on the patient’s treatment, clinical needs, and their symptoms.
    — Leigh Egan, FOXNews.com, 24 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • While oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz have largely recovered, the cost to get that crude out has skyrocketed because of expensive and inefficient workarounds being used.
    — Matt Egan, CNN Money, 26 Oct. 2026
  • While several leaders in my survey described stagnant information flows as an impediment to responding to overlapping disruptions, a few also reported tackling internal communications as a way to deal with polycrisis.
    — Carol Geffner, Forbes.com, 26 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Even as China races the United States for AI supremacy, Reuters has reported that China’s Moonshot AI is in talks with Amazon, Microsoft, and Alphabet for a share of the revenue those companies earn from hosting its Kimi K3 model.
    — NIALL FERGUSON, Foreign Affairs, 20 Oct. 2026
  • The high pressure air in the Great Basin races downhill to the coast.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 15 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Toronto tends to play better basketball at home than on the road.
    — David Troy OutKick, FOXNews.com, 28 Oct. 2026
  • This is the perfect option for anyone who wants to stay warm as temperatures drop but tends to overheat and prefers to avoid bulky layers.
    — Caroline Hughes, Travel + Leisure, 28 Oct. 2026
Verb
  • Lucy’s behavior may be frustratingly inconsistent, but many viewers will recognize the immeasurable suffering that drives it.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 30 Oct. 2026
  • Additive manufacturing drives development A major part of Beehive’s development strategy involves additive manufacturing.
    — Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 30 Oct. 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Runs.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/runs. Accessed 3 Nov. 2026.

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