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Synonyms

run scared

Idioms  

  1. Become intimidated or frightened. For example, The polls don't look too good for our candidate and he's running scared, or The shrinking market has many businesses running scared. [Mid-1900s]

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.

The party has run scared from nearly all justice issues ever since.

From Slate • Jan. 12, 2026

The players came to have fun, not run scared from the mighty program playing in its home state.

From Washington Post • Mar. 16, 2018

"I want us to run scared the whole time," Obama said at a fundraiser for the Democratic National Committee.

From US News • Jun. 3, 2016

Blame the broadcast industry's resistance toward change and the risk of failure, she said: "Everybody is running so scared, and has always run scared."

From Seattle Times • Apr. 6, 2013

There are lots of them," and he waved his arm in a wide half circle, "coming out of the East on the run, scared to death, and with more or less money in their pockets.

From The Bells of San Juan by Gregory, Jackson

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.