1 B2 idiomatic informal
To accumulate a large debt or bill by spending freely
"They ran it up to over two thousand dollars at the casino in one night."
separable
run it up
B2 informal separable transitive
To accumulate a large debt or bill through spending; to escalate a total amount
In plain English
To keep spending money until you owe a lot
What does "run it up" mean?
2 meanings, ordered from most common to least. Color-coded by CEFR level.
2 C1 idiomatic informal
(idiomatic) To propose or test an idea to see how others react — used in the phrase 'run it up the flagpole'
"Let's run it up the flagpole and see if the board approves."
separable
Literal vs figurative
Words literally mean
To run something upward — metaphorically, a number going up
Actually means
To keep spending money until you owe a lot
Usage tip
The pronoun 'it' typically refers to a bill, tab, or debt. Common in social settings ('run up the tab'). Also used in the phrase 'run it up the flagpole' meaning to test an idea.
Words that pair with "run it up"
Natural word combinations native speakers use most often.
tab bill debt score flagpole total
How to conjugate "run it up"
The five tense forms you'll use most often.
Base
run it up
I/you/we/they
3rd person
runs it up
he/she/it
Past simple
ran it up
yesterday
Past participle
run it up
have + pp
-ing form
running it up
continuous
Hear "run it up" in the wild
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