What does "rush" mean?
A sudden forward motion.
Rush
/ɹʌʃ/ adj, name, noun, verb, slang
adj, name, noun, verb, slang ·Top 500 ·Elementary level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: A sudden forward motion.
- Grammar: rush is listed as adj, name, noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: haste, hasten, hie, hurry.
- Useful contrasts: completed activity sheet, easy, mature plant.
- Usage evidence: Women who, at first glance, appear to be completely ordinary also don't seem to be in that much of a rush to get married.
How to use "rush"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "rush" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "rush" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "rush" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "rush" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "rush" is acting as adj, name, noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "haste" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "rush", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 A sudden forward motion.
"A gentleman of his train spurred up his horse, and, with a violent rush, severed him from the duke."
- 2 Any of several stiff plants of the genus Juncus, or the family Juncaceae, having hollow or pithy stems and small flowers, and often growing in marshes or near water.
- 3 the act of moving hurriedly and in a careless manner wordnet
- 4 A surge.
"A rush of business can be difficult to handle effectively for its unexpected volume."
- 5 The stem of such plants used in making baskets, mats, the seats of chairs, etc.
Show 18 more definitions
- 6 (American football) an attempt to advance the ball by running into the line wordnet
- 7 General haste.
"Many errors were made in the rush to finish."
- 8 The merest trifle; a straw.
"[W]hat occaſion haſt thou to give up Eccleſdoun-Caſtle to John Bull? his Friendſhip is not vvorth a Ruſh, give it me and I'll make it vvorth the vvhile."
- 9 a sudden burst of activity wordnet
- 10 A rapid, noisy flow.
"a rush of water; a rush of footsteps"
- 11 A wick.
- 12 a sudden forceful flow wordnet
- 13 A sudden attack; an onslaught.
- 14 the swift release of a store of affective force wordnet
- 15 The strategy of attacking an opponent with a large swarm of weak units, rather than spending time developing their abilities.
- 16 grasslike plants growing in wet places and having cylindrical often hollow stems wordnet
- 17 The act of running at another player to block or disrupt play.
"a rush on the quarterback"
- 18 A rusher; a lineman. dated
"the center rush, whose place is in the center of the rush line"
- 19 A sudden, brief exhilaration, for instance the pleasurable sensation produced by a stimulant.
"The rollercoaster gave me a rush."
- 20 A regulated period of recruitment in fraternities and sororities.
"rush week"
- 21 A person attempting to join a fraternity or sorority as part of a rush.
"At the end of rush, the fraternities vote on who they want to extend invitations to join, and the rushes can then make their selection from the bids they get. Some rushes get bids from multiple fraternities, while others do not get bids from any."
- 22 A perfect recitation. US, dated
- 23 A roquet in which the object ball is sent to a particular location on the lawn.
Verb
- 1 To hurry; to perform a task with great haste, often not properly or without thinking carefully. intransitive, transitive
"rush one's dinner; rush off an email response"
- 2 urge to an unnatural speed wordnet
- 3 To flow or move forward rapidly or noisily. intransitive
"armies rush to battle; waters rush down a precipice."
- 4 act at high speed wordnet
- 5 To dribble rapidly. intransitive
Show 15 more definitions
- 6 attack suddenly wordnet
- 7 To run directly at another player in order to block or disrupt play. intransitive, transitive
- 8 cause to occur rapidly wordnet
- 9 To cause to move or act with unusual haste. transitive
"Don't rush your client or he may withdraw."
- 10 move hurridly wordnet
- 11 To make a swift or sudden attack. intransitive
- 12 cause to move fast or to rush or race wordnet
- 13 To swiftly attack without warning. transitive
"A detachment of cavalrymen rushed the enemy's position."
- 14 run with the ball, in football wordnet
- 15 To attack (an opponent) with a large swarm of units. slang, transitive
- 16 To transport or carry quickly. transitive
"The shuttle rushes passengers from the station to the airport."
- 17 To roquet an object ball to a particular location on the lawn. intransitive, transitive
- 18 To attempt to join a fraternity or sorority, often involving a hazing or initiation process. intransitive, transitive
- 19 To recite (a lesson) or pass (an examination) without an error. US, dated, slang
- 20 To play at a faster tempo than one is supposed to or than the other musicians one is playing with, or to inadvertently gradually increase tempo while one is playing. intransitive
Adjective
- 1 Performed with, or requiring urgency or great haste, or done under pressure, especially if therefore done badly. not-comparable
"a rush job"
Adjective
- 1 done under pressure wordnet
- 2 not accepting reservations wordnet
Proper Noun
- 1 A surname; A surname from English countable, uncountable
- 2 A dialect of the programming language PL/I.
- 3 A surname; A surname from English; An English surname originating as an occupation for someone who made things from rushes. countable, uncountable
- 4 A surname; A surname from Irish countable, uncountable
- 5 A surname; A surname from German countable, uncountable
Show 7 more definitions
- 6 A male given name. countable, uncountable
- 7 A placename; A coastal town in Fingal, County Dublin, Ireland. countable, uncountable
- 8 A placename; A number of places in the United States.; An unincorporated community in El Paso County, Colorado, United States. countable, uncountable
- 9 A placename; A number of places in the United States.; An unincorporated community in Boyd County and Carter County, Kentucky, United States. countable, uncountable
- 10 A placename; A number of places in the United States.; A town in Monroe County, New York, United States. countable, uncountable
- 11 A placename; A number of places in the United States.; A number of townships, in Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, Ohio and Pennsylvania, United States, listed under Rush Township. countable, uncountable
- 12 A placename; Ellipsis of Rush County. abbreviation, alt-of, countable, ellipsis, uncountable
Antonyms
Example
"Women who, at first glance, appear to be completely ordinary also don't seem to be in that much of a rush to get married."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "rush"?
Common synonyms include: haste, hasten, hie, hurry, hurry, speed.
How do you use "rush" in a sentence?
Women who, at first glance, appear to be completely ordinary also don't seem to be in that much of a rush to get married.
How do you pronounce "rush"?
Pronounced /ɹʌʃ/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
Perhaps from Middle English ruschen, russchen (“to rush, startle, make a loud rushing noise”), from Old English hrysċan (“to jolt, startle”), from Proto-West Germanic *hurskijan, from Proto-Germanic *hurskijaną (“to startle, drive”), from *hurskaz (“fast, rapid, quick”), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱers- (“to run, hurry”). Cognate with Old High German hursken (“to hurry, speed, incite, accelerate”), Old English horsċ (“quick, quick-witted, clever”), Old Frisian rosk, rosch (“quick, rapid, sudden”). etymology note An alternative etymology traces rush via Middle English ruschen (“to rush”) from Old English *rūscian (“to rush”) from Proto-Germanic *rūskōną (“to rush, storm, be fierce, be cruel”), a variant (with formative k) of Proto-Germanic *rūsōną (“to be cruel, storm, rush”) from Proto-Indo-European *(o)rewə- (“to drive, move, agitate”), making it akin to Old High German rosc, rosci (“quick”), Middle Low German rûschen (“to rush”), Middle High German rūschen, riuschen (“to rush”) (German rauschen (“to rush”)), North Frisian ruse (“to rush”), Middle Dutch ruuscen (“to make haste”), Middle Dutch rūsen (“to rush”) (Dutch ruisen (“to rush”)), Danish ruse (“to rush”), Swedish rusa (“to rush”). Compare Middle High German rūsch (“a charge, rush”). Influenced by Middle English russhen (“to force back”) from Anglo-Norman russher, russer from Old French ruser, rëuser. Alternatively, according to the OED, perhaps an adaptation of Anglo-Norman russher, russer (“to force back, down, out of place, by violent impact", "to pull out or drag off violently or hastily”), from Old French re(h)usser, ruser (although the connection of the forms with single -s- and double -ss- is dubious; also adopted in English ruse; French ruser (“to retreat, drive back”)), from an assumed Vulgar Latin *refūsāre and Latin refundō (“I cause to flow back”), although connection to the same Germanic root is also possible. More at rouse.
Etymology 2
From Middle English risshe, rusch, risch, from Old English rysċ, rysċe, risċ, risċe, from a merger of Proto-West Germanic *riskijā, from Proto-Indo-European *(H)resg- (“to weave”) and Proto-West Germanic *ruskijā, possibly borrowed from Latin rūscum (“butcher's broom”), of unknown origin + *-jā (animal and plant suffix). Cognates include West Frisian risk, Dutch rus (“bulrush”), Norwegian Bokmål rusk, dialectal Norwegian ryskje (“hair-grass”). Further cognates include Russian ро́зга (rózga).
Etymology 3
* As an English surname, from the noun rush (“waterside plant, plant in marshes”). * Also as an English surname, from the archaic noun rush (“beehive”), from French ruche. * As an Irish surname, from Ó Ruis (literally “descendant of Ros”), a name from ros (“wood”). Sometimes also translated from Ó Luachra due to confusion with luachair (“rushes”), see Loughrey. * Also as an Irish surname, translated/Anglicized from Ó Fuada (literally “descendant of Fuada”), compare Foody, from the noun fuad (“haste”). * As a German surname, Americanized from Rüsch, Ruesch, Rusch.