run off

British  

verb

1. (intr) to depart in haste

2. (tr) to produce quickly, as copies on a duplicating machine

3. to drain (liquid) or (of liquid) to be drained

4. (tr) to decide (a race) by a runoff

5. (tr) to get rid of (weight, etc) by running

6. (intr) (of a flow of liquid) to begin to dry up; cease to run

7. 1. to steal; purloin

   2. to elope with

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noun

1. 1. an extra race to decide the winner after a tie

   2. a contest or election held after a previous one has failed to produce a clear victory for any one person

2. that portion of rainfall that runs into streams as surface water rather than being absorbed into ground water or evaporating

3. the overflow of a liquid from a container

4. grazing land for store cattle

run off Idioms  

1. Escape; see run away , def. 2.

2. Flow off, drain, as in By noon all the water had run off the driveway . [Early 1700s]

3. Print, duplicate, or copy, as in We ran off 200 copies of the budget . [Late 1800s]

4. Decide a contest or competition, as in The last two events will be run off on Tuesday . [Late 1800s]

5. Also, run someone out . Force or drive someone away, as in The security guard ran off the trespassers , or They ran him out of town . [Early 1700s]

6. Produce or perform quickly and easily, as in After years of practice, he could run off a sermon in a couple of hours . [Late 1600s]

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Example Sentences

The adaptation retained the 18th-century setting and the central plot: The teenage siren Manon, on her way to a convent, runs off with a smitten young aristocrat, the Chevalier Des Grieux.

From The Wall Street Journal

"Especially after staff meetings, I see staff running off to practice; they are really enthused and excited about what's on offer," she said.

From BBC

Australia needed 34 runs off the final two overs, but when Renshaw was caught for 65 after he skied the superb Muzarabani with eight balls remaining the game was effectively up.

From BBC

Coming into Wednesday trading, Tesla stock ran off three consecutive gains, adding 7.1% in the process.

From Barron's

And increased development will only exacerbate flooding – concreting over surfaces for housing or car parks prevents rain being absorbed and instead it runs off into drains and rivers which can become overwhelmed and breach defences.

From BBC

Related Words

• avoid
• depart
• disappear
• dodge
• elude
• emerge
• evade
• flee
• fly
• leave
• run
• slip
• slip away
• vanish