Runner
noun1
Abbreviation Short for Bow Street Runner
runner
nounalso spelled RunnerUS /ˈɹʌnɚ/ · UK /ˈɹʌnə/
Etymology From Middle English rennere, rynner, urnare, equivalent to run + -er. Cognate with Old Norse rennari (“runner; messenger”). Displaced earlier Middle English runel (“runner”), from Old English rynel (“runner”; also “messenger, courier”). ((botany) a long stolon sent by a plant): Compare typologically Russian побе́г (pobég) (akin to бежа́ть (bežátʹ)).
42 senses
- 1A person who moves, on foot, at a fast pace, especially…
- 2Any entrant, person or animal (especially a horse), for…
- 3A competitor in a poker tournament.
- 4Somebody who controls or manages (e.g. a system).
- 5A person or vessel that runs blockades or engages in smuggling.
- 6A player who runs for a batsman who is too injured to…
- 7A baserunner.
- 8A person (from one or the other team) who runs out onto…
- 9Anyone sent on an errand or with communications…
- 10A restaurant employee responsible for taking food from…
- 11A trusty (prisoner granted special privileges).
- 12An employee of a sports agent who tries to recruit…
- 13A person hired by a gambling establishment to locate…
- 14One who runs away; a deserter or escapee.
- 15An assistant.
- 16A quick escape away from a scene; (by extension) the…
- 17A type of soft-soled shoe originally intended for runners.
- 18Part of a shoe that is stitched to the bottom of the…
- 19A part of an apparatus that moves quickly.
- 20A smooth strip on which a sledge runs.
- 21The blade of an ice skate.
- 22The channel or strip on which a drawer is opened and closed.
- 23Part of a mechanism which allows something to be pulled…
- 24The curved base of a rocking chair.
- 25In saddlery, a loop of metal through which a rein is passed.
- 26In molding, a channel cut in a mold.
- 27The rotating-stone of a grinding-mill.
- 28The movable piece to which the ribs of an umbrella are attached.
- 29A tool in which lenses are fastened for polishing.
- 30An automobile; a working or driveable automobile.
- 31A strip of fabric used to decorate or protect a table or…
- 32A long, narrow carpet for a high-traffic area such as a…
- 33A part of a cigarette that is burning unevenly.
- 34A long stolon sent out by a plant (such as strawberry)…
- 35A short sling with a carabiner on either end, used to…
- 36A leaping food fish (Elagatis pinnulatis) of Florida and…
- 37A rope to increase the power of a tackle.
- 38A speedrunner.
- 39An idea or plan that has potential to be adopted or put…
- 40A running gag.
- 41A streamlet.
- 42A boat for transporting fish, oysters, etc.
› Agent noun of run; one who runs.
1
A person who moves, on foot, at a fast pace, especially an athlete.
- The first runner to cross the finish line wins the race.
- Near-synonym: racer
2
Any entrant, person or animal (especially a horse), for a race or any competition; a candidate for an election.
- The mare is the stables' runner for the 5.15 race at Epsom.
- The judge said she would not be a runner in the upcoming elections.
3
Card games, Poker Slang A competitor in a poker tournament.
4
Somebody who controls or manages (e.g. a system).
- […] at least half of which would be put into the pool for the winner, the rest kept for the runners of the system to cover costs and more than likely make a fair profit.1998 June 12, Daniel Jonathan Kirk, “tipping competitions”, in aus.legal (Usenet):
5
In compounds A person or vessel that runs blockades or engages in smuggling.
- The gunrunners were arrested leaving the airport.
- The modus operandi used by the idol and antique runners is to order consignments of fakes.1992, Hamendar Bhisham Pal, The Plunder of Art, page 75:
6
Ball games, Cricket, Games, Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports A player who runs for a batsman who is too injured to run; he is dressed exactly as the injured batsman, and carries a bat.
7
Ball games, Baseball, Games, Hobbies, Lifestyle, Softball, Sports A baserunner.
- The runner was out at second.
8
A person (from one or the other team) who runs out onto the field during the game to take verbal instructions from the coach to the players. A runner mustn't interfere with play, and may have to wear an identifying shirt to make clear his or her purpose on the field.
Australian rules football
9
Anyone sent on an errand or with communications, especially for a bank (or, historically, a foot soldier responsible for carrying messages during war).
- By 1963, Carmine was working as a "runner" for an accounting firm, and he would drop by 1619 Broadway to knock on doors in hopes of selling off some of his songs1990, Wayne Jancik, The Billboard Book of One-Hit Wonders, →ISBN, page 242:
10
A restaurant employee responsible for taking food from the kitchens to the tables.
- “Then you divide your army amongst the various houses where restorations are ordered for Jubilee day?” / “Certainly—say one waiter to ten guests—if it was a dinner we should send one waiter to six guests—with runners, of course.” / “Runners?” / “Omnibuses you call them here—young ones—apprentices—who wait on the waiters.” / “Run everywhere, do anything?”1897 June 19, “The Jubilee Waiters. Some Words with the Maître d’Hôtel.”, in The Daily News, number 15,984, London, →OCLC, page 2, column 6:
- […] the chef can send a runner to see why not and if the waiter has forgotten about the order, a runner can cover and serve.1989, Caterer & Hotelkeeper, volume 180, page 83:
- In our prisons you might find a condemned man working as a runner, a trusty, which is about as far from segregation as you can get.1959, Frederick S. Baldi, My Unwelcome Guests, page 25:
12
Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports Slang An employee of a sports agent who tries to recruit possible player clients for the agent.
- This week hundreds of NFL agents gathered to hear an honorable man talk about a noble pipedream. It was a discussion about a significant step to end one of the cornerstones of corruption in college football: runners. Not the backs getting their 40 times tested at the scouting combine but the slimeball trolls who work on behalf of agents to help recruit — a generous word — football prospects by illegally giving them cash (or cars or money for family members or rent for a nice house) so the player then signs with the agent upon turning pro.Freeman, Mike (25 February 2012), “Runners' world: Union boss Smith's noble idea likely stuck at the start”, in (Please provide the book title or journal name), CBSSports.com, retrieved 19 Mar 2014
13
A person hired by a gambling establishment to locate potential customers and bring them in.
14
One who runs away; a deserter or escapee.
15
Broadcasting, Film, Media, Television An assistant.
16
Slang A quick escape away from a scene; (by extension) the person who gets away.
Usually in the phrase do a runner
- He did a runner after robbing the drugstore.
- We were shocked, astonished, when the staff, when pushed, disclosed that they had had to cover runners the previous night. The runners used the scam of ‘smoking’ to go outside after eating and drinking champagne and top-notch wine … and kept walking. And who paid their bill? Staff! Disgusting.2018 March 24, Loch Fyne, quotee, “True or false? 'If you do a runner, the waiter has to pay your bill'”, in The Guardian, →ISSN:
- Tess stands by Mr Foley in runners that are bright yellow and exuberant and off-putting.2023, Elaine Feeney, How to Build a Boat, Vintage (2024), page 167:
18
Part of a shoe that is stitched to the bottom of the upper so it can be glued to the sole.
19
A part of an apparatus that moves quickly.
- After the cycle completes, the runner travels back quickly to be in place for the next cycle.
› A mechanical part intended to guide or aid…
20
A smooth strip on which a sledge runs.
21
The blade of an ice skate.
22
The channel or strip on which a drawer is opened and closed.
23
Part of a mechanism which allows something to be pulled out for maintenance.
- Maintenance was simplified by making all components easily accessible and easy to remove: for example, the air compressors in the short nose slide out on runners.1962 June, “Beyond the Channel: U.S.S.R.: A 3,000 h.p. diesel-hydraulic from MaK”, in Modern Railways, page 416:
24
The curved base of a rocking chair.
25
In saddlery, a loop of metal through which a rein is passed.
26
In molding, a channel cut in a mold.
27
The rotating-stone of a grinding-mill.
28
The movable piece to which the ribs of an umbrella are attached.
29
A tool in which lenses are fastened for polishing.
30
Slang An automobile; a working or driveable automobile.
- The car salesman told me that the used Volvo was a nice little runner.
- Is that old Mercedes on the forecourt a runner? / No, it has no gearbox.
31
A strip of fabric used to decorate or protect a table or dressing table.
- The red runner makes the table so festive.
32
A long, narrow carpet for a high-traffic area such as a hall or stairs.
- Why don't we put down a clear runner in the front hall?
33
Slang A part of a cigarette that is burning unevenly.
36
A leaping food fish (Elagatis pinnulatis) of Florida and the West Indies; the skipjack, shoemaker, or yellowtail.
38
Video games A speedrunner.
39
An idea or plan that has potential to be adopted or put into operation.
- This idea isn't a runner. Let's not waste any more time on it.
40
A running gag.
- Don’t Look Up jabs around omnidirectionally, and some of the most gleefully ridiculous jokes land: There’s an inspired runner about an increasingly scandal-plagued Supreme Court nominee, for example, and another in which politicians and voters alike absurdly declare their allegiance to “the jobs the comet will bring.”7 December 2021, Jesse Hassenger, “Leonardo DiCaprio and Jennifer Lawrence cope with disaster in the despairing satire Don’t Look Up”, in AV Club:
- The fairy-tale promise of love and intimacy became a runner in Swift’s work as a songwriter, something she’d repeatedly espouse, then skewer; she was self-aware about the role narrative played in her expectations.2023 December 6, Sam Lansky, “Person of Year 2023 : Taylor Swift”, in Time, archived from the original on 06 Dec 2023:
41
A streamlet.
- A runner, or streamlet, from other woods joined it at this end, and waited in the pool to pass through the grating to the mills.1927, Henry Williamson, Tarka the Otter:
42
A boat for transporting fish, oysters, etc.
- Synonyms
- quick-draw, extender
- Derived terms
75 terms
base runner, bed runner, bladerunner, blockade runner, blue runner, bookrunner, brushrunner, bull runner, circle runner, cloudrunner, conrunner, designated runner, do a runner, dope-runner, drug runner, endless runner, fell runner, footrunner, forerunner, fore-runner, free runner, front runner, frontrunner, front-runner, gag runner, ghost runner, hit-and-runner, Indian Runner, infinite runner, invisible runner, jayrunner, kite runner, logrunner, midnight runner, non-runner, nonrunner, parkrunner, pier runner, pinch runner, plug the runner, racerunner, rainbow runner, rat runner, ridge-runner, river runner, river-runner, roadrunner, rockrunner, rope runner, route runner, rumrunner, rum-runner, rum runner, runner bean, runnerless, runner poison, runner-runner, runners and riders, runner's knee, runner stone, runner up, runner-up, sand runner, scarlet runner, showrunner, soak the runner, stonerunner, torch runner, treerunner, tree runner, ultrarunner, underrunner, wave runner, waverunner, wave-runner