phrasal verb (idiom) · neutral
run into the ground
UK/rʌn ˈɪntə ðə graʊnd/US/rʌn ˈɪntu ðə graʊnd/run·IN·to·the·GROUND
to use or repeat something so much that it becomes exhausted, ineffective, or boring
Examples
“The TV show was interesting at first but the producers ran it into the ground with endless sequels.”
“Don't run the joke into the ground—people stop laughing after a while.”
“If you run a topic into the ground in your essay, readers will lose interest.”
Band 8 sentence
“Journalists warned that sensational headlines would run the story into the ground and damage public trust.”
Collocations
- run something into the ground
- run it into the ground
Common mistakes
They ran the idea to the ground.→They ran the idea into the ground.
Don't run the topic ground.→Don't run the topic into the ground.
Say it for a higher band
5overuse→6wear out→7+run into the ground
Synonyms
overuse
Easily confused
wear out
“They ran the joke into the ground by repeating it every episode.”
Related words
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