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ran
ˈran
also chiefly dialectal run; run; running
1
a
: to go faster than a walk
specifically
: to go steadily by springing steps so that both feet leave the ground for an instant in each step
b
of a horse
: to move at a fast gallop
d
: to utilize a running play on offense
—used of a football team
2
b
: to keep company : consort
c
: to sail before the wind in distinction from reaching or sailing close-hauled
7
a
: to go back and forth : ply
b
of fish
: to migrate or move in considerable numbers
especially
: to move up or down a river to spawn
12
a
: to develop rapidly in some specific direction
especially
: to throw out an elongated shoot of growth
1
a
: to cause (an animal) to go rapidly : ride or drive fast
d
: to follow the trail of backward : trace
e
: to enter, register, or enroll as a contestant in a race
f
: to put forward as a candidate for office
g
: to carry (the football) on a running play
2
a
: to drive (livestock) especially to a grazing place
b
: to provide pasturage for (livestock)
c
: to keep or maintain (livestock) on or as if on pasturage
Using Run in the Past Tense: Usage Guide
The past tense run still survives in speech in southern England and in the speech especially of older people in some parts of the U.S. It was formerly used in literature, and was a standard variant in our dictionaries from 1828 until 1934. Grammarians have generally opposed it, and many people consider it nonstandard. Just about everybody uses ran in writing now.
1
a
: an act or the action of running : continued rapid movement
b
: a quickened gallop
c
: a migration of fish (as up or down a river) especially to spawn
also
: such fish in the process of migration
e
: a score made in baseball by a runner reaching home plate safely
f
: strength or ability to run
3
a
: the stern of the underwater body of a ship from where it begins to curve or slope upward and inward
b
: the direction in which a vein of ore lies
c
: a direction of secondary or minor cleavage : grain
d
: a horizontal distance (such as that covered by a flight of steps)
e
: general tendency or direction
4
a
: a rapid passage up or down a scale in vocal or instrumental music
b
: a number of rapid small dance steps executed in even tempo
e
: a set of consecutive measurements, readings, or observations
7
a
: the distance covered in a period of continuous traveling or sailing
b
: a course or trip especially if mapped out and traveled with regularity
c
: a news reporter's regular territory : beat
9
a
: a way, track, or path frequented by animals
b
: an enclosure for domestic animals where they may feed or exercise
c
Australia
d
: an inclined passageway
10
a
: an inclined course (as for skiing or bobsledding)
b
: a support (such as a track, pipe, or trough) on which something runs
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Merriam-Webster unabridged
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