RUN OFF Synonyms: 176 Similar and Opposite Words

run off 1 of 2

verb

Definition of run off

as in to out

to drive or force out the dog often ran off cats and other animals that had intruded upon his owner's property

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to escape

to get free from a dangerous or confining situation their rebellious daughter's run off because she was disciplined again

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to retreat

to hasten away from something dangerous or frightening the mouse ran off as soon as it saw us

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runoff

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of run off

Verb

Campbell then ran off in an alley just south of the Damen station. — Tess Kenny, Chicago Tribune, 13 Oct. 2026 When someone intervened, the unidentified suspect ran off, the university said. — Adam Harrington, CBS News, 12 Oct. 2026

Noun

That framework includes rain barrels but often takes the form of swales, slope-sided channels that soak up rainwater and manage runoff and erosion. — Pedro Moura, Los Angeles Times, 15 Oct. 2026 That runoff is critical because Aurora doesn't rely on rainwater that falls directly within city limits for its supply. — Kelly Werthmann, CBS News, 15 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for run off

Recent Examples of Synonyms for run off

Verb

Bunnie Xo’s post-divorce fun is raising eyebrows after a cozy Waffle House outing with 24-year-old reality star Dylan Wolf sent fans into a frenzy over their age gap.

— Lauryn Overhultz, FOXNews.com, 22 Sep. 2026
Serena Williams and Alexis Ohanian stepped out for a very rare family outing with their two daughters.

— Juliana Ukiomogbe, InStyle, 18 Sep. 2026

Definition of out

Verb

As the comet rotates, fresh ice enters the sunlight and sublimates; the escaping gas then drags entrained dust particles away from the nucleus.

— Joe Rao, Space.com, 13 Oct. 2026
In July, two of OpenAI’s models escaped a testing environment and hacked the open-source AI platform Hugging Face.

— Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez, Fortune, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of escape

Verb

Meanwhile, conservative activists spread rumors last week that Talarico was struggling with his mental health and had secretly retreated to an Ohio hospital.

— Lauren Green, The Washington Examiner, 15 Oct. 2026
While Chelsea tend to retreat after taking the lead, their opponents also become more aggressive in response, committing extra bodies forward and helping to create more open, end-to-end encounters.

— Conor O'Neill, New York Times, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of retreat

Verb

The case centers on the Cuban government shooting down two Brothers to the Rescue flights, a civilian rescue group dedicated to saving refugees fleeing the authoritarian Castro regime — then run by Raul Castro’s older brother Fidel.

— Liv Caputo Herald, Miami Herald, 19 Oct. 2026
Several reports say the attackers arrived on a motorcycle and fled after firing.

— Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 19 Oct. 2026

Definition of flee

Verb

The company had been gearing up to fly several more this year having already been given approval to fly as many as 12 times a year.

— Richard Tribou, The Orlando Sentinel, 18 Oct. 2026
For the 31st time as secretary of state, Marco Rubio has left on a trip abroad, flying to Uzbekistan and later India amid rumblings that America's top diplomat is ignoring pressing matters in favor of politically safer visits and meetings.

— ABC News, ABC News, 18 Oct. 2026

Definition of fly

Noun

The Hudson River had a little current, fed by freshets from upstream with local rains, and melting snow farther up, in the Adirondacks.

— Ian Frazier, The New Yorker, 6 Apr. 2020
As August turned to September, the sun dropped and the first cold freshet of autumn rainwater flowed out of the mountains and tickled the noses of the salmon waiting off Astoria, where the Columbia meets the Pacific Ocean.

— Patrick Symmes, Harper's magazine, 28 Oct. 2019

Definition of freshet

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Style

“Run off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/run%20off. Accessed 20 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of run off

verb

noun

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