run against
Idioms-
Also, run up against or run into . Encounter something, especially a difficulty, unexpectedly. For example, We didn't know we'd run up against so much opposition , or He ran into trouble with his taxes . [Late 1300s]
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Work against, as in Public sentiment ran against her . [Late 1300s]
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Oppose for elective office, as in Susan decided to run against a very popular incumbent . This usage is a figurative application of running in a footrace. [First half of 1800s]
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Even slumping Kyle Tucker hit a solo home run against the Nationals — his first homer since Aug. 8 and his first at Dodger Stadium since June 15.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 5, 2026
The other deadline will come in November, when Infantino’s opponents would need to enter a candidate to run against him.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
Ed Miliband became foreign minister, Wes Streeting -- who abandoned plans to run against Burnham for the Labour leadership -- was named defence minister, and left-wing figurehead Angela Rayner returned to government.
From Barron's ● Jul. 21, 2026
It is mathematically impossible for a rival to run against him, meaning he will become the Labour leader on Friday.
From BBC ● Jul. 14, 2026
Though they had twice run against each other for the presidency, he insisted that “we never stood in one another’s way.”
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
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.
