Meaning & use
run the gamut
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Meaning
phraseidiom
To include or cover every item in a whole range, from one extreme to the other.
Grammar: Fixed phrase usually followed by 'from ... to ...' or 'of'; the subject is the thing that varies: prices run the gamut.
Patterns
- run the gamut from something to something
- run the gamut of something
The restaurant's menu runs the gamut from simple soups to elaborate seafood dishes.
Her emotions ran the gamut from relief to fury during the meeting.
The conference topics run the gamut from climate change to space travel.
Word forms
| third person singular | runs the gamut |
|---|---|
| past tense | ran the gamut |
| past participle | run the gamut |
| -ing form | running the gamut |
Common combinations
- run the gamut from
- The class projects run the gamut from posters to short films.
- run the gamut of emotions
- The audience ran the gamut of emotions in two hours.
- run the whole gamut
- The show ran the whole gamut of comedy styles.
- ran the gamut
- Reactions to the news ran the gamut from joy to disbelief.
Synonyms and how they differ
- span
- Span states the extent from end to end, but run the gamut stresses that many different types appear between the ends.
- range
- Range is a plainer verb and can be used for numbers, while run the gamut is a more colorful idiom.
- cover
- Cover only says that something includes items, while run the gamut implies all the items between two extremes.
- encompass
- Encompass is more formal and suggests containing everything, without the picture of moving along a scale.
Word family
- gamut noun
- the complete range or scale of something
Commonly confused: run the gamut or run the gauntlet?
run the gamut vs run the gauntlet
To run the gauntlet means to endure a series of attacks or criticism, while to run the gamut means to cover a full range.
Practice
The festival's food stalls ___ from vegan snacks to barbecue ribs.
Choose one answer.
Run the gamut means to cover a whole range. Run the gauntlet is the tempting wrong choice because it sounds similar but means enduring attacks.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “run the gamut”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.