runner

Noun

1. Agent noun of run; one who runs.
   • The first runner to cross the finish line wins the race.
   • Near-synonym: racer

   Synonyms: racer

   1. A person who moves, on foot, at a fast pace, especially an athlete.

   2. Any entrant, person or animal (especially a horse), for a race or any competition; a candidate for an election.

      • The mare is the stables' runner for the 5.15 race at Epsom.
      • The judge said she would not be a runner in the upcoming elections.

   3. (poker slang) A competitor in a poker tournament.

   4. Somebody who controls or manages (e.g. a system).

      • […] at least half of which would be put into the pool for the winner, the rest kept for the runners of the system to cover costs and more than likely make a fair profit. - 1998 June 12, Daniel Jonathan Kirk, “tipping...

   5. (chiefly in combination) A person or vessel that runs blockades or engages in smuggling.

      • The gunrunners were arrested leaving the airport.
      • The modus operandi used by the idol and antique runners is to order consignments of fakes. - 1992, Hamendar Bhisham Pal, The Plunder of Art, page 75:

   6. (cricket) A player who runs for a batsman who is too injured to run; he is dressed exactly as the injured batsman, and carries a bat.

   7. (baseball, softball) A baserunner.

      • The runner was out at second.

   8. (Australian rules football) A person (from one or the other team) who runs out onto the field during the game to take verbal instructions from the coach to the players. A runner mustn't interfere with play, and may have to wear an identifying shirt to make clear his or her purpose on the field.

   9. Anyone sent on an errand or with communications, especially for a bank (or, historically, a foot soldier responsible for carrying messages during war).

      • By 1963, Carmine was working as a "runner" for an accounting firm, and he would drop by 1619 Broadway to knock on doors in hopes of selling off some of his songs - 1990, Wayne Jancik, The Billboard Book of One-Hit...

   10. A restaurant employee responsible for taking food from the kitchens to the tables.

       • “Then you divide your army amongst the various houses where restorations are ordered for Jubilee day?” / “Certainly—say one waiter to ten guests—if it was a dinner we should send one waiter to six guests—with runners,...
       • […] the chef can send a runner to see why not and if the waiter has forgotten about the order, a runner can cover and serve. - 1989, Caterer & Hotelkeeper, volume 180, page 83:

   11. (US, dated) A trusty (prisoner granted special privileges).

       • In our prisons you might find a condemned man working as a runner, a trusty, which is about as far from segregation as you can get. - 1959, Frederick S. Baldi, My Unwelcome Guests, page 25:

   12. (sports slang) An employee of a sports agent who tries to recruit possible player clients for the agent.

       • This week hundreds of NFL agents gathered to hear an honorable man talk about a noble pipedream. It was a discussion about a significant step to end one of the cornerstones of corruption in college football: runners....

   13. A person hired by a gambling establishment to locate potential customers and bring them in.

       Synonyms: lugger picker-up roper steerer

   14. One who runs away; a deserter or escapee.

   15. (film) An assistant.

2. A quick escape away from a scene; (by extension) the person who gets away.
   • He did a runner after robbing the drugstore.
   • We were shocked, astonished, when the staff, when pushed, disclosed that they had had to cover runners the previous night. The runners used the scam of ‘smoking’ to go outside after eating and drinking champagne and...
3. A type of soft-soled shoe originally intended for runners.
   • Tess stands by Mr Foley in runners that are bright yellow and exuberant and off-putting. - 2023, Elaine Feeney, How to Build a Boat, Vintage (2024), page 167:

   Synonyms: sneaker trainer

4. Part of a shoe that is stitched to the bottom of the upper so it can be glued to the sole.
5. A part of an apparatus that moves quickly.
   • After the cycle completes, the runner travels back quickly to be in place for the next cycle.
6. A mechanical part intended to guide or aid something else to move (using wheels or sliding).

   1. A smooth strip on which a sledge runs.

   2. The blade of an ice skate.

   3. The channel or strip on which a drawer is opened and closed.

   4. Part of a mechanism which allows something to be pulled out for maintenance.

      • Maintenance was simplified by making all components easily accessible and easy to remove: for example, the air compressors in the short nose slide out on runners. - 1962 June, “Beyond the Channel: U.S.S.R.: A 3,000 h.p....

   5. The curved base of a rocking chair.

      Synonyms: rocker

   6. In saddlery, a loop of metal through which a rein is passed.

   7. In molding, a channel cut in a mold.

   8. The rotating-stone of a grinding-mill.

   9. The movable piece to which the ribs of an umbrella are attached.

   10. A tool in which lenses are fastened for polishing.

7. An automobile; a working or driveable automobile.
   • The car salesman told me that the used Volvo was a nice little runner.
   • Is that old Mercedes on the forecourt a runner? / No, it has no gearbox.
8. A strip of fabric used to decorate or protect a table or dressing table.
   • The red runner makes the table so festive.
9. A long, narrow carpet for a high-traffic area such as a hall or stairs.
   • Why don't we put down a clear runner in the front hall?
10. A part of a cigarette that is burning unevenly.
11. A long stolon sent out by a plant (such as strawberry), in order to root new plantlets, or a plant that propagates by using such runners.
12. A short sling with a carabiner on either end, used to link the climbing rope to a bolt or other protection such as a nut or friend.