run into

British  

verb

1. (also tr) to collide with or cause to collide with

   her car ran into a tree

2. to encounter unexpectedly

3. (also tr) to be beset by or cause to be beset by

   the project ran into financial difficulties

4. to extend to; be of the order of

   debts running into thousands

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run into Idioms  

1. Meet or find by chance, as in I ran into an old friend at the concert . [c. 1900]

2. See run against , def. 1.

3. Collide with, as in The car ran straight into the retaining wall . [c. 1800]

4. Incur, as in We've run into extra expenses with the renovation , or James said they've run into debt . [c. 1400]

5. Mount up, increase to, as in Her book may well run into a second volume .

6. Follow without interruption, as in What with one day running into the next, we never knew just what day it was! or He spoke so fast his words ran into one another . [Late 1600s] Also see run into a stone wall ; run into the ground .

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

run into

The 99-yard return looked like it might turn the tide for the Trojans, until, on the next drive, Rutgers busted a 49-yard run into the red zone.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 19, 2026

But as usual, he can’t help but break through the fence and run into traffic.

From Salon ● Sep. 18, 2026

After Bryan encounters a cop, a dog and an elderly couple living in the country, all of whom run into trouble, the movie essentially becomes a third-person-shooter videogame that takes place in a single night.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 17, 2026

Foreign Minister Shisir Khanal has called the disaster a "Himalayan tsunami" and has warned reconstruction costs could run into the billions of dollars.

From Barron's ● Sep. 6, 2026

“I liked knowing I wouldn’t run into anyone,” she says after a moment.

From "How to Disappear Completely" by Ali Standish

Related Words

• allow
• challenge
• confront
• encounter
• endure
• experience
• fight
• meet
• oppose
• risk
• suffer
• take