Meaning & use
runoff
Last updated
Meanings
noununcountable
Water from rain or melting snow that flows over the ground into streams and rivers instead of soaking in.
Grammar: Uncountable when referring to the water itself; can be countable when talking about types or amounts.
Patterns
- runoff from something
- rainfall runoff
- stormwater runoff
Heavy rain caused runoff to flood the nearby fields.
Farm chemicals can enter rivers through agricultural runoff.
The city built a new drainage system to manage stormwater runoff.
nouncountable
A second election held when no candidate wins a majority in the first round.
Grammar: Countable; often used with 'in' or 'into': 'in a runoff', 'force a runoff'.
Patterns
- a runoff election
- force a runoff
- in a runoff
The election will go to a runoff next month.
She won the runoff with 55% of the vote.
No candidate got over 50%, so a runoff was required.
Word forms
| plural | runoffs |
|---|
Common combinations
- runoff election
- The runoff election will be held in two weeks.
- stormwater runoff
- Stormwater runoff can carry pollution into lakes.
- agricultural runoff
- Agricultural runoff often contains fertilizers.
- force a runoff
- The close result will force a runoff between the top two candidates.
Synonyms and how they differ
- drainage
- The system or process of removing water; 'runoff' is the water itself that flows away.
- second round
- In elections, a common alternative, but 'runoff' is the specific term for a decisive second vote.
Commonly confused: runoff or run off?
runoff vs run off
A phrasal verb meaning to leave quickly or to flow away; as a noun, 'runoff' is one word.
Practice
In 'The heavy rain led to runoff that polluted the river,' what does 'runoff' refer to?
Choose one answer.
In this context, 'runoff' means rainwater or melted snow flowing over land into waterways. The election sense does not fit the sentence about rain and pollution.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “runoff”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.