1
: the act of running up something
2
: a usually sudden increase in volume or price
3
: a period immediately preceding an action or event
ran up; run up; running up; runs up
: to grow rapidly : shoot up
1
: bid up
2
: to stitch together quickly
3
: to erect hastily
4
: to achieve by accumulating
ran up a big lead
Examples of run-up in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 30 Aug. 2024
Their outlook also suggests Vice President Kamala Harris, in her race against Donald Trump for the White House, may be hurt by voters’ perceptions of the inflation run-up during President Biden’s administration while gaining limited benefit from the recent slowdown in price gains, Hoyt said.
—Paul Davidson, USA TODAY, 12 Aug. 2024
Jenny Gold, Los Angeles Times, 17 Aug. 2024
For all candidates who need to run up big margins in the suburbs, understanding this complex political culture is a must.
—Becky Nicolaides / Made By History, TIME, 15 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for run-up 
Noun
In the clip, Travis, 34, is on a golf course getting ready to haul off on a tee shot in run-up Happy fashion.
—Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 30 Aug. 2024
Their outlook also suggests Vice President Kamala Harris, in her race against Donald Trump for the White House, may be hurt by voters’ perceptions of the inflation run-up during President Biden’s administration while gaining limited benefit from the recent slowdown in price gains, Hoyt said.
—Paul Davidson, USA TODAY, 12 Aug. 2024
Verb
In January, the House passed a smaller version of an expansion, but the legislation ran up against Republican opposition in the Senate earlier this month and failed.
—Jenny Gold, Los Angeles Times, 17 Aug. 2024
For all candidates who need to run up big margins in the suburbs, understanding this complex political culture is a must.
—Becky Nicolaides / Made By History, TIME, 15 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for run-up
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'run-up.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near run-up
Cite this Entry
“Run-up.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/run-up. Accessed 11 Sep. 2024.
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