run into

British  

verb

1. (also tr) to collide with or cause to collide with

   her car ran into a tree

2. to encounter unexpectedly

3. (also tr) to be beset by or cause to be beset by

   the project ran into financial difficulties

4. to extend to; be of the order of

   debts running into thousands

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run into Idioms  

1. Meet or find by chance, as in I ran into an old friend at the concert . [c. 1900]

2. See run against , def. 1.

3. Collide with, as in The car ran straight into the retaining wall . [c. 1800]

4. Incur, as in We've run into extra expenses with the renovation , or James said they've run into debt . [c. 1400]

5. Mount up, increase to, as in Her book may well run into a second volume .

6. Follow without interruption, as in What with one day running into the next, we never knew just what day it was! or He spoke so fast his words ran into one another . [Late 1600s] Also see run into a stone wall ; run into the ground .

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

run into

The changes are largely aimed at sustaining a tariff agenda that has run into legal trouble.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 25, 2026

At Obsessed Fest, where tickets went for $25, Kristina Lee, 28, and Maddie Jahn, 30, both from L.A., were delighted to run into members of their romance book club.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026

Bradley Barcola: One early run into the box which won a corner after he skipped past Pedro Porro.

From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026

If companies do not do this they can be fined up to 10% of their global revenues, which in the case of Google could run into many billions of pounds.

From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026

“Harris, walk him down there so he doesn’t run into a wall. And hustle back.”

From "Popcorn" by Rob Harrell

Related Words

• allow
• challenge
• confront
• encounter
• endure
• experience
• fight
• meet
• oppose
• risk
• suffer
• take