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• rush
  rush

  verb (used without object)

  to move, act, or progress with speed, impetuosity, or violence.
• Rush
  Rush

  noun

  Benjamin, 1745–1813, U.S. physician and political leader: author of medical treatises.

rush

¹ American  

[ruhsh] / rʌʃ /

verb (used without object)

• rushes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• rushed,
  past participle,  past
• rushing
  present participle

1. to move, act, or progress with speed, impetuosity, or violence.

   Synonyms:

   urge, speed, run, hasten

2. to dash, especially to dash forward for an attack or onslaught.

3. to appear, go, pass, etc., rapidly or suddenly.

   The blood rushed to his face.

4. Football. to carry the ball on a running play or plays.

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verb (used with object)

• rushes,
  present (3rd person singular)
• rushed,
  past participle,  past
• rushing
  present participle

1. to perform, accomplish, or finish with speed, impetuosity, or violence.

   They rushed the work to make the deadline.

2. to carry or convey with haste.

   to rush an injured person to the hospital.

3. to cause to move, act, or progress quickly; hurry.

   He rushed his roommate to get to the party on time.

4. to send, push, force, impel, etc., with unusual speed or haste.

   to rush a bill through Congress.

5. to attack suddenly and violently; charge.

6. to overcome or capture (a person, place, etc.).

7. Informal. to heap attentions on; court intensively; woo.

   to rush an attractive newcomer.

8. to entertain (a prospective fraternity or sorority member) before making bids for membership.

9. Football.

   1. to carry (the ball) forward across the line of scrimmage.

   2. to carry the ball (a distance) forward from the line of scrimmage.

      The home team rushed 145 yards.

   3. (of a defensive team member) to attempt to force a way quickly into the backfield in pursuit of (the back in possession of the ball).

noun

1. the act of rushing; a rapid, impetuous, or violent onward movement.

2. a hostile attack.

3. an eager rushing of numbers of persons to some region that is being occupied or exploited, especially because of a new mine.

   the gold rush to California.

4. a sudden appearance or surge.

   Seeing the old photo set off a rush of tears.

   You’ll experience a massive rush of adrenaline as you find yourself in free fall.

5. hurried activity; busy haste.

   the rush of city life.

   Antonyms:

   lethargy, indolence, sloth

6. a hurried state, as from pressure of affairs.

   to be in a rush.

7. press of work, business, traffic, etc., requiring extraordinary effort or haste.

8. Football.

   1. an attempt to carry or instance of carrying the ball across the line of scrimmage.

   2. an act or instance of rushing the offensive back in possession of the ball.

9. a scrimmage held as a form of sport between classes or bodies of students in colleges.

10. Movies. rushes, daily.

11. Also called flash.  Slang. the initial, intensely pleasurable or exhilarated feeling experienced upon taking a narcotic or stimulant drug.

12. adrenaline rush.

    The sheer ecstatic rush in that moment was the best feeling on earth.

13. Informal. a series of lavish attentions paid a woman by a suitor.

    He gave her a big rush.

14. the rushing by a fraternity or sorority.

adjective

1. requiring or done in haste: rush work.

   a rush order;

   rush work.

2. characterized by excessive business, a press of work or traffic, etc..

   The cafeteria's rush period was from noon to two in the afternoon.

3. characterized by the rushing of potential new members by a sorority or fraternity.

   rush week on the university campus.

rush ² American  

[ruhsh] / rʌʃ /

noun

1. any grasslike plant of the genus Juncus, having pithy or hollow stems, found in wet or marshy places.

2. any plant of the rush family.

3. any of various similar plants.

4. a stem of such a plant, used for making chair bottoms, mats, baskets, etc.

5. something of little or no value; trifle.

   not worth a rush.

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Rush ³ American  

[ruhsh] / rʌʃ /

noun

1. Benjamin, 1745–1813, U.S. physician and political leader: author of medical treatises.

2. his son Richard, 1780–1859, U.S. lawyer, politician, and diplomat.

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rush ¹ British  

/ rʌʃ /

verb

1. to hurry or cause to hurry; hasten

2. to make a sudden attack upon (a fortress, position, person, etc)

3. to proceed or approach in a reckless manner

4. to proceed with precipitate haste

5. (intr) to come, flow, swell, etc, quickly or suddenly

   tears rushed to her eyes

6. slang to cheat, esp by grossly overcharging

7. (tr) to make a concerted effort to secure the agreement, participation, etc, of (a person)

8. (intr) American football to gain ground by running forwards with the ball

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noun

1. the act or condition of rushing

2. a sudden surge towards someone or something

   a gold rush

3. a sudden surge of sensation, esp produced by a drug

4. a sudden demand

adjective

1. requiring speed or urgency

   a rush job

2. characterized by much movement, business, etc

   a rush period

rush ² British  

/ rʌʃ /

noun

1. any annual or perennial plant of the genus Juncus , growing in wet places and typically having grasslike cylindrical leaves and small green or brown flowers: family Juncaceae Many species are used to make baskets

2. any of various similar or related plants, such as the woodrush, scouring rush, and spike-rush

3. something valueless; a trifle; straw

   not worth a rush

4. short for rush light

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rush Idioms  

1. see bum's rush; fools rush in where angels fear to tread; mad rush; (rush) off someone's feet.

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Synonym Usage

Rush, hurry, dash, speed imply swiftness of movement. Rush implies haste and sometimes violence in motion through some distance: to rush to the store. Hurry suggests a sense of strain or agitation, a breathless rushing to get to a definite place by a certain time: to hurry to an appointment. Dash implies impetuosity or spirited, swift movement for a short distance: to dash to the neighbor's. Speed means to go fast, usually by means of some type of transportation, and with some smoothness of motion: to speed to a nearby city.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• rusher
  noun
• rushlike
  adjective
• unrushed
  adjective
• rushingly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Participles

• rushing
  present
• rushed
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• rush
  simple
• rushes
  simple
• have rushed
  perfect
• has rushed
  perfect
• am rushing
  progressive
• are rushing
  progressive
• is rushing
  progressive
• have been rushing
  perfect progressive
• has been rushing
  perfect progressive

Past

• rushed
  simple
• had rushed
  perfect
• was rushing
  progressive
• were rushing
  progressive
• had been rushing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will rush
  simple
• will have rushed
  perfect
• will be rushing
  progressive
• will have been rushing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of rush¹

First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English verb rushe(n), ruishe, from Anglo-French russher, russer, Old French re(h)usser, re(h)user, ruser, from Late Latin recūsāre “to push back,” Latin: “to refuse”; noun derivative of the verb; see also recuse, ruse

Origin of rush²

First recorded before 900; Middle English risch(e), ris(s)e, rich, Old English rysc, risc, rix; cognate with Dutch, Middle High German rusch, obsolete German Rusch, German Rausch

Explanation

To rush is to hurry or move very quickly, like when you rush to get to class on time or rush to catch the subway instead of waiting for the next one. Rush implies urgency — you need to get somewhere, or do something, fast. You can also rush someone else: "Don't rush me, I like to stay after the movie and watch the credits!" It's a noun, too: "She's obviously in a rush to get somewhere." A "rush job" has an immediate deadline, and "rush hour" is the busiest time of day for drivers in a rush to get to work, or to go home afterward.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

rush Rush rushes rushed rushing

Farmer and herder Patrick Lokolia, from neighbouring Napawoi village, joined the gold rush hoping to earn some extra money to support his family.

From BBC ● Aug. 22, 2026

They say they are mainly driven by the adrenaline rush, tradition and, of course, the bragging rights.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026

Presumably, if the administration honchos really think that is the case, they will rush out today and throw all of their money into these grossly undervalued bonds.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 21, 2026

In the rush for everyone to claim tech-company status, we lost a lot of good shading in many iconic logos: Warner Bros.,

From Slate ● Aug. 21, 2026

Every little while he would jump up and rush straight at me, showing his teeth, and uttering those deep grunts.

From "Summer of the Monkeys" by Wilson Rawls

He hit the bar from the spot before making it seven, with further goals from Rush, McMahon and Nicol sealing the club's biggest victory in domestic competition.

From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026

Rush is now director of the Red Line for Civil Rights at Democracy Forward, a nonprofit group that tracks the division’s activities.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 19, 2026

Graham’s support for the latter earned him the nickname “Lindsey Grahamnesty” from conservative talk radio host Rush Limbaugh.

From Salon ● Jul. 13, 2026

Those included former broadcaster Rush Limbaugh, a proud smoker who, sadly, died of lung cancer five years ago, at age 69.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 30, 2026

Rush recalled that the comment “procured a transient smile, but it was soon succeeded by the solemnity with which the whole business was conducted.”

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis

With black smoke belching high into the sky, Lobga staggers some 90 seconds before collapsing in flames and a U.N. security guard rushes over blasting an extinguisher.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026

"This could potentially overtake us here, this has gotten a little scary," a crew member says as the train rushes past burning trees near Armstrong, Ontario.

From BBC ● Jul. 15, 2026

Then he spots Argentine rapper Trueno striding across the stadium floor, and rushes over for a hug.

From BBC ● Jun. 21, 2026

"Workers are now paying twice -– first through unsafe production rushes, and now through likely job and income insecurity," he said.

From Barron's ● Mar. 26, 2026

Shortly afterward, however, someone rushes in and says the Japanese have bombed Pearl Harbor, an American naval base in Hawaii.

From "At Last She Stood" by Erin Entrada Kelly

So: Patients are frustrated because doctors seem rushed.

From Slate ● Aug. 22, 2026

Butler highlighted the challenges he faces as he has "only got seven months" before the next assembly elections in May 2027 but there "will be no rushed decisions".

From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026

Wrist injuries are a tricky recovery, not to be rushed.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026

He rushed four houses down, to where Elmwood Drive meets Ridgecrest Road.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 19, 2026

She breathed harder, deeply, as if all the sky’s oxygen had rushed over her at once.

From "Impossible Creatures" by Katherine Rundell

The college route would have given her a prestigious degree, but also mounds of student debt and little to no practical experience—a dangerous position in a legal industry rushing to adopt AI productivity tools.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 22, 2026

While other Big Tech companies have spent hundreds of billions of dollars on AI investments, Apple has chosen to wait and see instead of rushing to adopt new technology.

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 20, 2026

Speaking to reporters in southwest England, Burnham said it was "not a moment for any rushing to judgement".

From Barron's ● Aug. 15, 2026

Last summer, Representative Sara Jacobs would run up to her office to give herself injections of hormones before rushing back to Congress for a session with her fellow lawmakers.

From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026

The sound of rushing blood filled Clare’s good ear.

From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman

Related Words

• barrel
• bolt
• break
• charge
• chase
• dash
• dispatch
• fly
• hustle
• press
• push
• run
• scramble
• scurry
• shoot
• sprint
• zip