rush
verb (used without object)
to move, act, or progress with speed, impetuosity, or violence.
Showing results for rush.
Search instead for
to rush.
rush
1 American
[ruhsh]
/ rʌʃ /
verb (used without object)
-
rushes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
rushed,
past participle, past
-
rushing
present participle
verb (used with object)
-
rushes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
rushed,
past participle, past
-
rushing
present participle
-
to perform, accomplish, or finish with speed, impetuosity, or violence.
They rushed the work to make the deadline.
-
to carry or convey with haste.
to rush an injured person to the hospital.
-
to cause to move, act, or progress quickly; hurry.
He rushed his roommate to get to the party on time.
-
to send, push, force, impel, etc., with unusual speed or haste.
to rush a bill through Congress.
-
to attack suddenly and violently; charge.
-
to overcome or capture (a person, place, etc.).
-
Informal. to heap attentions on; court intensively; woo.
to rush an attractive newcomer.
-
to entertain (a prospective fraternity or sorority member) before making bids for membership.
-
Football.
-
to carry (the ball) forward across the line of scrimmage.
-
to carry the ball (a distance) forward from the line of scrimmage.
The home team rushed 145 yards.
-
(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
-
the act of rushing; a rapid, impetuous, or violent onward movement.
-
a hostile attack.
-
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.
-
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.
-
hurried activity; busy haste.
the rush of city life.
-
a hurried state, as from pressure of affairs.
to be in a rush.
-
press of work, business, traffic, etc., requiring extraordinary effort or haste.
-
Football.
-
an attempt to carry or instance of carrying the ball across the line of scrimmage.
-
an act or instance of rushing the offensive back in possession of the ball.
-
-
a scrimmage held as a form of sport between classes or bodies of students in colleges.
-
Movies. rushes, daily.
-
Also called flash. Slang. the initial, intensely pleasurable or exhilarated feeling experienced upon taking a narcotic or stimulant drug.
-
The sheer ecstatic rush in that moment was the best feeling on earth.
-
Informal. a series of lavish attentions paid a woman by a suitor.
He gave her a big rush.
-
the rushing by a fraternity or sorority.
adjective
-
requiring or done in haste: rush work.
a rush order;
rush work.
-
characterized by excessive business, a press of work or traffic, etc..
The cafeteria's rush period was from noon to two in the afternoon.
-
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
-
any grasslike plant of the genus Juncus, having pithy or hollow stems, found in wet or marshy places.
-
any plant of the rush family.
-
any of various similar plants.
-
a stem of such a plant, used for making chair bottoms, mats, baskets, etc.
-
something of little or no value; trifle.
not worth a rush.
Rush
3
American
[ruhsh]
/ rʌʃ /
noun
-
Benjamin, 1745–1813, U.S. physician and political leader: author of medical treatises.
-
his son Richard, 1780–1859, U.S. lawyer, politician, and diplomat.
rush
1
British
/ rʌʃ /
verb
-
to hurry or cause to hurry; hasten
-
to make a sudden attack upon (a fortress, position, person, etc)
-
to proceed or approach in a reckless manner
-
to proceed with precipitate haste
-
(intr) to come, flow, swell, etc, quickly or suddenly
tears rushed to her eyes
-
slang to cheat, esp by grossly overcharging
-
(tr) to make a concerted effort to secure the agreement, participation, etc, of (a person)
-
(intr) American football to gain ground by running forwards with the ball
noun
-
the act or condition of rushing
-
a sudden surge towards someone or something
a gold rush
-
a sudden surge of sensation, esp produced by a drug
-
a sudden demand
adjective
-
requiring speed or urgency
a rush job
-
characterized by much movement, business, etc
a rush period
rush
2
British
/ rʌʃ /
noun
-
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
-
any of various similar or related plants, such as the woodrush, scouring rush, and spike-rush
-
something valueless; a trifle; straw
not worth a rush
-
short for rush light
rush
Idioms
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
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
rushsimple
-
rushessimple
-
have rushedperfect
-
has rushedperfect
-
am rushingprogressive
-
are rushingprogressive
-
is rushingprogressive
-
have been rushingperfect progressive
-
has been rushingperfect progressive
Past
-
rushedsimple
-
had rushedperfect
-
was rushingprogressive
-
were rushingprogressive
-
had been rushingperfect progressive
Future
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
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
As the war in Iran drove up energy prices and threatened fresh disruption for German industry, Noeske has instead been scrambling to keep up with a rush of orders.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 9, 2026
But Houston’s pass rush was one of the best units in the league last season, and how much of that carries over is the swing factor.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026
New players have also entered the rush: Ivory Coast named its first space agency director last month and will host the African Space Expo later this month.
From Barron's ● Sep. 9, 2026
In that moment, the city, the noise, the rush, my daily fears and anxieties all melted away.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 9, 2026
The door swung open, sending a rush of forest debris over Clare’s freshly scrubbed hollow.
From "The Undead Fox of Deadwood Forest" by Aubrey Hartman
Consider the foreign-born who joined the Gold Rush, the Chinese railroad workers, and still and always the Latino population along the long, wide international border.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026
In “The Quickening” Elizabeth Rush calls this river of ice “the biggest wild card” that will determine how sea-level rise will affect coastal communities.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 24, 2026
After the runaway success of her breakout single, Rush, and her second album, The Year I Turned 21, Starr was beginning to feel trapped by other people's expectations.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
But in the Gold Rush era it was taken away and, later, used by the logging industry, reshaping the landscape.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 28, 2026
Neither Rush nor his assistants could handle the press of sick people demanding his cure.
From "An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793" by Jim Murphy
Desrosiers erupted for 118 yards on nine rushes, including a 34-yard touchdown run in the fourth.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 28, 2026
Too late, a UN security guard rushes in with a fire extinguisher.
From Barron's ● Aug. 7, 2026
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
Intel is also expecting 2027 capital expenditures to be even higher as it rushes to meet customer demand, Zinsner says.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
Finally, we reach one marked Grand Theater, where a young guy in a gray suit rushes over to tell Agent Magnus, “It’s almost our turn.”
From "Amari and the Night Brothers" by B.B. Alston
The Giants then produced a convincing 28-20 win over the Dallas Cowboys, with second-year quarterback Jaxson Dart passing for 230 yards and three touchdowns, while fit-again running back Cam Skattebo rushed for another.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
A surfer in his fifties was rushed to hospital on Monday after being bitten by a shark in Western Australia, the state government and local ambulance service said.
From Barron's ● Sep. 14, 2026
The Aztecs return their starting tailback from last season, Lucky Sutton, who rushed for 1,297 yards and 10 touchdowns, and added three running backs who contributed against Portland State.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 12, 2026
The Reflecting Pool had already experienced problems almost immediately after the rushed renovation.
From Salon ● Sep. 12, 2026
Without thinking twice, she rushed to get Abigail and bring her back to the cave where she’d been hiding.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
Derrick Henry also scored twice before half-time to move into third on the all-time list for rushing touchdowns, then added another as the Ravens cruised to a 41-23 win.
From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026
Guess finished the night completing four of nine passes for 56 yards, while rushing for 19.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 12, 2026
A.I. company CEOs, employee whistleblowers and industry boosters can’t stop crowing about the dangers posed by the products they’re rushing to create.
From Salon ● Sep. 12, 2026
"I saw him rushing out, and it was a great opportunity to take the ball away from him and make the goal a little bit easier."
From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026
He crouched, straining for sounds of pursuit above the rushing water.
From "Wolf Brother" by Michelle Paver
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.
