Run over meaning
Run over means to hit someone or something with a vehicle and drive over them. It can also mean to go on longer than the planned time.
run something over
run over · ran · run · running
Slow down! You’ll run over a cat.
Run over meanings and examples
3 meanings, each with its own CEFR level. A level marked ~ is our estimate: Oxford and Cambridge give none for that meaning.
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1
Hit someone or something with a vehicle and drive over them
run something over
- Slow down! You’ll run over a cat.
- I left my bike by the gate, and a truck ran it over.
- He was nearly run over crossing the road.
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2
Go on longer than the planned time
run over
- Sorry I’m late. The meeting ran over.
- The match ran over by twenty minutes.
- Try not to run over when you give your talk.
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3
Read, say or practise something quickly to check or remember it
run over something
- Let’s run over the plan one more time.
- I ran over my notes on the bus.
- Could you run over the main points again?
Café orders
New friends
At the airport
Slova
Use run over in real conversations
- Learn new words with picture cards
- Talk with Felix, an AI tutor, about the things you love
- Short lessons at your level, a few minutes a day
Is run over separable?
When a vehicle hits something, run over is separable: run over a dog, run a dog over. With a pronoun, it goes in the middle: The car ran it over. It is very common in the passive: He got run over.
When run over means take too long, it has no object: The class ran over. When it means check quickly, the object comes after: run over your lines.
Verb tenses for run over
| Present | I run over · she runs over |
|---|---|
| Past | ran over |
| Present perfect | have run over |
| -ing form | running over |
Common mistakes with run over
What learners often say, and what to say instead.
Wrong: Our cat nearly got ran over yesterday.
Right: Our cat nearly got run over yesterday.
After got or was, use the participle run, not ran.
Wrong: The lesson ran over the time by ten minutes.
Right: The lesson ran over by ten minutes.
In this meaning run over has no object. Add by for the extra time.
Wrong: I ran over my friend in the street and we had coffee.
Right: I ran into my friend in the street and we had coffee.
Run over means hit with a car. To meet by chance, use run into.
Synonyms and opposites of run over
Words close to it, and words that mean the opposite.
Similar
- knock downhit someone so they fall, maybe without driving over them
- overrunformal; go on longer than planned
- go overcheck something carefully; close to run over
Opposite
- finish earlyend before the planned time
- swerveturn quickly to avoid hitting something
Run over quiz
Three quick questions. Pick an answer to see if it is right and why.
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1Be careful on that road. A fox got ___ there last week.
Get run over means a vehicle hit it and drove over it.
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2Choose the right sentence.
When it means take too long, run over has no object.
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3Before the show the director says, “Let’s run over the last scene.” What will they do?
Run over something can mean practise or check it quickly.
More phrasal verbs with run
All phrasal verbs with run, by level, with an exercise
8 phrasal verbs start with run. Test yourself on all of them in a few minutes.
- run out ofB1use all of something so that you have none left
- run outB1use all of something so there is none left
- run intoB2meet someone you know when you did not expect to
- run awayB2leave a person or place suddenly, often secretly, to escape
- run downB2lose power slowly, or make something lose power
- run throughB2explain, read or check something quickly from start to end
- run offB2leave a place or person suddenly, often without saying why
Run over FAQ
Questions people ask about run over.
What does got run over mean?
It means a car or other vehicle hit someone or something and went over them. Our neighbour’s cat got run over.
Run over vs run into: what is the difference?
Run into means hit something while moving, or meet someone by chance. Run over is only for vehicles going over something on the ground.
What does the meeting ran over mean?
It means the meeting finished later than planned. It is common at work: Sorry, my last call ran over.
Use run over in real conversations
In Slova you learn new words with picture cards, then use them when you talk about the things you love. A few minutes a day, at your level.