running smoothly
22
2.7
- idiom
:
funcionar sin problemas
- The event is running smoothly, with no delays in the schedule.
- ensure that it is running smoothly
- keep equipment running smoothly
- things are running smoothly
Hopefully everything runs smoothly and yeah, let's go.
- Hopefully everything runs smoothly and yeah, let's go.
- Banks, banks and other middle men have been keeping stuff like this running smoothly for centuries.
- Yes, you are doing more, but you're doing it so things run smoothly for your child.
- So one might give an account which says when you behave morally, things run smoothly.
- You know, they, if they have a disagreement and listen, I've had some nights that have all run smoothly.
- But the more you organize and plan in advance, the higher the chances the day is going to run smoothly.
- I suspected that the Queen's English and I would not run smoothly then, so I wept past imagining.
- It's cold, precarious, isolated, and emotionless, but everyone sort of sees that it runs smoothly.
Examples
-
In Hollywood, traffic on the 101 is running smoothly in both directions through the Cahuenga Pass and into downtown L.A.
-
Hopefully, your hearing will run smoothly; everyone will be pleasant and on the same page.
Academic text (2002) -
Bill is in charge of making sure everything runs smoothly up front.
-
Her secretary called to let her know the office was running smoothly.
Fiction book (1996) -
And then, once it's up and running smoothly, I'll turn it over to Jill.
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You know, I just make sure everything's running smoothly on the team.
-
Cohesiveness ensures that things are running smoothly in order to achieve success.
Academic text (2005) -
By then, the CSS cataloging project was running smoothly.
Academic text (2015) -
Affiliate members volunteered countless hours of service to ensure that this large event ran smoothly.
Academic text (1993) -
Conscientious operators of large grinders follow guidelines to keep equipment running smoothly with minimum downtime and replacement costs.
Academic text (2000)
Synonyms
97
3.7
Working properly after it is started or fixed
3
3.1
Working as it should and ready to use
Work very well and smoothly after being fixed or updated
Antonyms
How Smooth
Surface Forms
Morphology
The phrase 'running smoothly' is directly compositional: 'running' (functioning/operating) combined with 'smoothly' (in an even, effortless way) yields the meaning 'operating without problems.' This combination follows a transparent adjective/adverb composition and is a common, cross-linguistically accessible metaphor, so a B1 learner who knows both words will readily infer the MWE's meaning.
Etymology
Running smoothly comes from the picture of a wheel or machine running over a very flat surface so it moves smoothly with no bumps. So, it now means 'working without problems'.