to run, don't walk
- idiom
- Informal
:
corre, no camines
- She told me if that book is still in stock, run, don't walk and buy it.
Examples
-
If you hear about a job opening at that company, run, don't walk to apply.
-
You should run, don't walk, to that sale!
-
When they announced free tickets, everyone rushed to run, don't walk to the counter.
-
You need to run, don't walk, to the nearest store!
-
If you hear about a limited-time offer, run, don't walk to take advantage of it.
-
She said if there's a new restaurant in town, run, don't walk to try their food.
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When the tickets went on sale, I told my friend to run, don't walk and get them quickly.
Synonyms
637
1.0
To move or act more quickly to avoid being late
548
1.0
To move or act quickly because a situation needs it
512
6.7
To hurry so you do something faster, often to avoid being late
119
3.2
To start doing something yourself after waiting or thinking
97
1.0
To make someone move or work faster than they want
35
5.2
To hurry and go faster, often when driving
10
7.7
To tell someone to hurry
9
6.5
To hurry when someone tells you to
3
4.7
Do something quickly to use a good chance before it ends
1
2.7
To move quickly in one direction
1
9.9
People say it to tell someone to hurry
To take a chance quickly before other people do
To accept an offer or chance quickly before someone else does
To go somewhere quickly because you must hurry
Antonyms
How Urgent
Surface Forms
Morphology
The imperative contrast 'run' (move quickly) + 'don't walk' (do not move slowly) yields a directly compositional exhortation to act immediately; a B1 learner who knows the words and basic imperative/negation will readily infer the intended urgency. Although often used idiomatically in advertising, the meaning is transparently derived from the constituents and parallel constructions occur in many languages.
Etymology
Run, don't walk comes from old shop ads and people telling customers to hurry to a sale. The clear image of going by run, not walk, makes it mean 'act immediately'.