run out of

Idioms  

1. Exhaust a supply or quantity of, as in We're about to run out of coffee and sugar. This expression, dating from about 1700, can be used both literally and figuratively. Thus run out of gas may mean one no longer has any fuel, but it has also acquired the figurative sense of exhausting a supply of energy, enthusiasm, or support, and hence causing some activity to come to a halt. For example, After running ten laps I ran out of gas and had to rest to catch my breath, or The economic recovery seems to have run out of gas. On the other hand, run out of steam, originally alluding to a steam engine, today is used only figuratively to indicate a depletion of energy of any kind.

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Example Sentences

If your investment portfolio is 50 times your annual spending, you can stop worrying about whether you’ll run out of money, they both said.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 26, 2026

She’s run out of money, and this festival was to have launched her return to the U.S.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 19, 2026

Eventually, however, the largest stars run out of fuel.

From Science Daily • Jun. 14, 2026

He said, “No. I think it just means they’ve run out of things on the food chain.”

From Salon • Jun. 12, 2026

It had been a very long day; Cassiopeia had run out of pep completely and was now riding on Simon’s shoulders.

From "The Hidden Gallery" by Maryrose Wood

Related Words

• absorb
• deplete
• devour
• dominate
• drain
• eat up
• employ
• exhaust
• expend
• obsess
• preoccupy
• spend
• waste