Phrasal Verb - run down

A phrase that combines a verb with a preposition or adverb or both and that functions as a verb whose meaning is different from the combined meanings of the individual words.

Phrasal Verb:

run down

Meaning / Example:

1. to come down, running or very quickly; to go down, running or very quickly.
> I need to talk to you down here. Can you run down?

2. [for something] to lose power and stop working.
> The clock ran down because no one was there to wind it.
> The toy ran down and wouldn't go again until it had been wound.

3. to become worn or dilapidated.
> The property was allowed to run down, and it took a lot of money to fix it up.

Phrasal verbs, also called two-word verbs, are idiomatic expressions wherein the second element of the verb (the adverb or particle) is not necessarily predictable.

A compilation of 50 phrasal verbs.