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

Old Man Munson had some kind of fit and ran off into the woods, screaming.

From Literature

He tossed it to Grief, who ran off, growling happily.

From Literature

When we got to the field, Mawuli ran off with one of his friends.

From Literature

The contest hung in the balance heading into the 18th over with Sri Lanka needing 21 runs off 18 balls with four wickets in hand but the part-time spin of Bethel turned the game.

From Barron's

With 38 runs off 33 balls required, Banton played with calculated aggression en route to 54 not out off 33 balls to put England on the brink of victory.

From BBC

Related Words

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