1 a person or an animal that runs, especially one taking part in a race:
a long-distance / cross-country / marathon runner * a list of runners (= horses in a race) and riders
seealsoFORERUNNER, FRONTRUNNER, ROADRUNNER
2 (especially in compounds) a person who takes goods illegally into or out of a place:
a drug runner
seealsoGUNRUNNER
3 a strip of metal, plastic or wood that sth slides on or can move along on:
the runners of a sledge
4 a plant stem that grows along the ground and puts down roots to form a new plant
5 a long narrow piece of fabric or carpet on a piece of furniture or on the floor
6 a person in a company or an organization whose job is to take messages, documents, etc. from one place to another
IDIOMS
do a runner (BrE, informal) to leave or run away from somewhere in a hurry, especially to avoid paying a bill or receiving a punishment
