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

Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang is looking at an overwhelming amount of cash “that he has literally run out of productive places to put it fast enough,” Malek said in emailed comments.

From MarketWatch • May 22, 2026

It’s also apparent toward the end — when “Boosters” seems to run out of either money or time — that the camera framing gets uncomfortably tight.

From Los Angeles Times • May 21, 2026

The government says it has run out of diesel and fuel oil needed to power the generators that supplement the electricity production of its dilapidated power plants.

From Barron's • May 18, 2026

"I don't think we're going to run out of fuel," he told reporters in April.

From BBC • May 3, 2026

The rookie navigators might have been lost in the bad weather, or the rookie pilots might have run out of fuel.

From "A Thousand Sisters" by Elizabeth Wein

Related Words

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