to run into

Examples

• All

• "On April 1, 1981," Harper told police, "I ran into Lou at the gas station."

  Academic text (1995)

• I was surprised when I ran into my old classmate at the coffee shop.

• And I hope the next time we run into each other, it's better news.

• It's still kind of cool to run into people who watch the channel.

• OK, love, I think we might run into some old friends here.

• I ran into Leo at the police station.

  Lethal Weapon 3 (1992)

• About a year later, however, I ran into John on the street.

  Academic text (1992)

• Several years after graduation, we ran into each other in New York.

  Academic text (2007)

• You don't know what a relief it is to run into somebody who speaks my language.

  This Could Be the Night (1957)

• And that's where I ran into my first ODA team.

  Shawn Ryan Show

Synonyms

E

to encounter

vsto run into

442 3.2

To meet someone or find a problem unexpectedly

is limited to meeting a person by chance, not broad experiences

C

to come across

vsto run into

244 2.6

To find something or someone by chance

is focused on meeting a person unexpectedly rather than finding objects

B

to bump into

vsto run into

55 2.2

To meet someone by chance in a public place

is the general idea of meeting someone by chance without public emphasis

C

to come upon

vsto run into

50 2.2

To find something or someone by chance

is more about meeting people by chance than general discovery

R

to run across

vsto run into

43 2.7

Find something by chance while doing something else

is the simple meeting idea without implying it happened during another activity

C

to cross paths

vsto run into

• Informal

32 3.7

Meet someone by chance

is the standard phrase for meeting by chance, not emphasizing movement

C

to chance on

vsto run into

18 6.1

To find something or someone by accident while doing something else

is the simple chance meeting idea without extra nuance

H

to happen upon

vsto run into

15 4.9

Find a person or thing by chance

is the usual meeting sense without stressing discovery

C

to chance upon

vsto run into

3 5.1

Find someone or something by accident

is the accidental meeting idea without broader uses

C

to cross one's path

vsto run into

4.2

To meet someone unexpectedly, often by chance

is more general and less idiomatic in everyday speech

Antonyms

P

to plan

∞ 1.0

To decide and arrange in advance how to do something

A

to avoid

∞ 1.0

To stay away from something or not do it to stop something bad from happening

How Unexpected

to stumble

171 2.8

to come across

244 2.6

to run into

338 2.7

to bump into

55 2.2

to meet

∞ 1.0

to meet up with

• Informal

81 2.1

to see

• Informal

∞ 1.0

Surface Forms

Morphology

Etymology