to perform, accomplish, or finish with speed, impetuosity, or violence.
They rushed the work to make the deadline.
to carry or convey with haste.
to rush an injured person to the hospital.
to cause to move, act, or progress quickly; hurry.
He rushed his roommate to get to the party on time.
to send, push, force, impel, etc., with unusual speed or haste.
to rush a bill through Congress.
to attack suddenly and violently; charge.
to overcome or capture (a person, place, etc.).
Informal. to heap attentions on; court intensively; woo.
to rush an attractive newcomer.
to entertain (a prospective fraternity or sorority member) before making bids for membership.
Football.
to carry (the ball) forward across the line of scrimmage.
to carry the ball (a distance) forward from the line of scrimmage.
The home team rushed 145 yards.
(of a defensive team member) to attempt to force a way quickly into the backfield in pursuit of (the back in possession of the ball).
the act of rushing; a rapid, impetuous, or violent onward movement.
a hostile attack.
an eager rushing of numbers of persons to some region that is being occupied or exploited, especially because of a new mine.
the gold rush to California.
a sudden appearance or surge.
Seeing the old photo set off a rush of tears.
You’ll experience a massive rush of adrenaline as you find yourself in free fall.
hurried activity; busy haste.
the rush of city life.
a hurried state, as from pressure of affairs.
to be in a rush.
press of work, business, traffic, etc., requiring extraordinary effort or haste.
Football.
an attempt to carry or instance of carrying the ball across the line of scrimmage.
an act or instance of rushing the offensive back in possession of the ball.
a scrimmage held as a form of sport between classes or bodies of students in colleges.
Movies. rushes, daily.
Also called flash. Slang. the initial, intensely pleasurable or exhilarated feeling experienced upon taking a narcotic or stimulant drug.
The sheer ecstatic rush in that moment was the best feeling on earth.
Informal. a series of lavish attentions paid a woman by a suitor.
He gave her a big rush.
the rushing by a fraternity or sorority.
requiring or done in haste: rush work.
a rush order;
rush work.
characterized by excessive business, a press of work or traffic, etc..
The cafeteria's rush period was from noon to two in the afternoon.
characterized by the rushing of potential new members by a sorority or fraternity.
rush week on the university campus.
any grasslike plant of the genus Juncus, having pithy or hollow stems, found in wet or marshy places.
any plant of the rush family.
any of various similar plants.
a stem of such a plant, used for making chair bottoms, mats, baskets, etc.
something of little or no value; trifle.
not worth a rush.
Benjamin, 1745–1813, U.S. physician and political leader: author of medical treatises.
his son Richard, 1780–1859, U.S. lawyer, politician, and diplomat.
to hurry or cause to hurry; hasten
to make a sudden attack upon (a fortress, position, person, etc)
to proceed or approach in a reckless manner
to proceed with precipitate haste
(intr) to come, flow, swell, etc, quickly or suddenly
tears rushed to her eyes
slang to cheat, esp by grossly overcharging
(tr) to make a concerted effort to secure the agreement, participation, etc, of (a person)
(intr) American football to gain ground by running forwards with the ball
the act or condition of rushing
a sudden surge towards someone or something
a gold rush
a sudden surge of sensation, esp produced by a drug
a sudden demand
requiring speed or urgency
a rush job
characterized by much movement, business, etc
a rush period
any annual or perennial plant of the genus Juncus , growing in wet places and typically having grasslike cylindrical leaves and small green or brown flowers: family Juncaceae Many species are used to make baskets
any of various similar or related plants, such as the woodrush, scouring rush, and spike-rush
something valueless; a trifle; straw
not worth a rush
short for rush light
Rush, hurry, dash, speed imply swiftness of movement. Rush implies haste and sometimes violence in motion through some distance: to rush to the store. Hurry suggests a sense of strain or agitation, a breathless rushing to get to a definite place by a certain time: to hurry to an appointment. Dash implies impetuosity or spirited, swift movement for a short distance: to dash to the neighbor's. Speed means to go fast, usually by means of some type of transportation, and with some smoothness of motion: to speed to a nearby city.
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English verb rushe(n), ruishe, from Anglo-French russher, russer, Old French re(h)usser, re(h)user, ruser, from Late Latin recūsāre “to push back,” Latin: “to refuse”; noun derivative of the verb; see also recuse, ruse
First recorded before 900; Middle English risch(e), ris(s)e, rich, Old English rysc, risc, rix; cognate with Dutch, Middle High German rusch, obsolete German Rusch, German Rausch
To rush is to hurry or move very quickly, like when you rush to get to class on time or rush to catch the subway instead of waiting for the next one. Rush implies urgency — you need to get somewhere, or do something, fast. You can also rush someone else: "Don't rush me, I like to stay after the movie and watch the credits!" It's a noun, too: "She's obviously in a rush to get somewhere." A "rush job" has an immediate deadline, and "rush hour" is the busiest time of day for drivers in a rush to get to work, or to go home afterward.
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Goalkeepers go down, the other 10 players rush to the technical area for a team talk.
From BBC • Apr. 27, 2026
First author Jayson Ball describes the current moment as a "gold rush of neuroscience," driven by advanced tools that allow scientists to precisely control specific groups of brain cells.
From Science Daily • Apr. 27, 2026
"We are not in a rush," Bank of Latvia governor Martins Kazaks, a member of the ECB's rate-setting governing council, told The Financial Times last week.
From Barron's • Apr. 27, 2026
That is forcing bridal stores to stock more dresses to accommodate last-minute weight fluctuations, leaving dressmakers on the hook for an increasing number of rush orders and hurried adjustments.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 25, 2026
But it had been a short relief, for moments later, that blanket was ripped away, a rush of cold shocking him back to life.
From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
