rush

rush¹

—rushingly, adv.

/rush/, v.i.

1. to move, act, or progress with speed, impetuosity, or violence.

2. to dash, esp. to dash forward for an attack or onslaught.

3. to appear, go, pass, etc., rapidly or suddenly: The blood rushed to his face.

4. Football. to carry the ball on a running play or plays.

v.t.

5. to perform, accomplish, or finish with speed, impetuosity, or violence: They rushed the work to make the deadline.

6. to carry or convey with haste: to rush an injured person to the hospital.

7. to cause to move, act, or progress quickly; hurry: He rushed his roommate to get to the party on time.

8. to send, push, force, impel, etc., with unusual speed or haste: to rush a bill through Congress.

9. to attack suddenly and violently; charge.

10. to overcome or capture (a person, place, etc.).

11. Informal. to heap attentions on; court intensively; woo: to rush an attractive newcomer.

12. to entertain (a prospective fraternity or sorority member) before making bids for membership.

13. Football.

a. to carry (the ball) forward across the line of scrimmage.

b. to carry the ball (a distance) forward from the line of scrimmage: The home team rushed 145 yards.

c. (of a defensive team member) to attempt to force a way quickly into the backfield in pursuit of (the back in possession of the ball).

n.

14. the act of rushing; a rapid, impetuous, or violent onward movement.

15. a hostile attack.

16. an eager rushing of numbers of persons to some region that is being occupied or exploited, esp. because of a new mine: the gold rush to California.

17. a sudden appearance or access: a rush of tears.

18. hurried activity; busy haste: the rush of city life.

19. a hurried state, as from pressure of affairs: to be in a rush.

20. press of work, business, traffic, etc., requiring extraordinary effort or haste.

21. Football.

a. an attempt to carry or instance of carrying the ball across the line of scrimmage.

b. an act or instance of rushing the offensive back in possession of the ball.

22. a scrimmage held as a form of sport between classes or bodies of students in colleges.

23. rushes, Motion Pictures. daily (def. 4).

24. Informal. a series of lavish attentions paid a woman by a suitor: He gave her a big rush.

25. the rushing by a fraternity or sorority.

26. Also called flash. Slang. the initial, intensely pleasurable or exhilarated feeling experienced upon taking a narcotic or stimulant drug.

adj.

27. requiring or done in haste: a rush order; rush work.

28. characterized by excessive business, a press of work or traffic, etc.: The cafeteria's rush period was from noon to two in the afternoon.

29. characterized by the rushing of potential new members by a sorority or fraternity: rush week on the university campus.

[1325-75; (v.) ME ruschen < AF russher, russer, OF re(h)usser, re(h)user, ruser < LL recusare, to push back, L: to refuse. See RECUSE, RUSE; (n.) ME rus(s)che, deriv. of the v.]

Syn. 1. hasten, run. RUSH, HURRY, DASH, SPEED imply swiftness of movement. RUSH implies haste and sometimes violence in motion through some distance: to rush to the store. HURRY suggests a sense of strain or agitation, a breathless rushing to get to a definite place by a certain time: to hurry to an appointment. DASH implies impetuosity or spirited, swift movement for a short distance: to dash to the neighbor's. SPEED means to go fast, usually by means of some type of transportation, and with some smoothness of motion: to speed to a nearby city.

Ant. 18. sloth, lethargy.

rush²

—rushlike, adj.

/rush/, n.

1. any grasslike plant of the genus Juncus, having pithy or hollow stems, found in wet or marshy places. Cf. rush family.

2. any plant of the rush family.

3. any of various similar plants.

4. a stem of such a plant, used for making chair bottoms, mats, baskets, etc.

5. something of little or no value; trifle: not worth a rush.

[bef. 900; ME rusch, risch, OE rysc, risc; c. D, obs. G Rusch]

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I

Any of several flowering plants distinguished by cylindrical stalks or hollow, stemlike leaves.

They are found in temperate regions, particularly in moist or shady locations. The rush family (Juncaceae) includes the genera Juncus, the common rushes, and Luzula, the wood rushes. In many parts of the world, common rushes are woven into chair bottoms, mats, and basketwork, while rush pith serves as wicks in open oil lamps and tallow candles (rushlights). Other rushes include the bulrush (family Typhaceae), the horsetail (or scouring rush), the flowering rush (Butomus umbellatus, family Butomaceae), and the sweet rush, or sweet flag (Acorus calamus, arum family).

II

(as used in expressions)

scouring rush

gold rush

Klondike gold rush

Rush Benjamin

Rush Richard

Rushing Jimmy

James Andrew Rushing

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▪ plant

 any of several flowering plants distinguished by cylindrical stalks or hollow, stemlike leaves. They are found in temperate regions and particularly in moist or shady locations. The rush family (Juncaceae) includes Juncus, the common rushes, and Luzula, the woodrushes. Common rushes are used in many parts of the world for weaving into chair bottoms, mats, and basketwork, and the pith serves as wicks in open oil lamps and for tallow candles (rushlights). J. effusus, called soft rush, is used to make the tatami mats of Japan. The bulrush, also called reed mace and cattail, is Typha angustifolia, belonging to the family Typhaceae; its stems and leaves are used in North India for ropes, mats, and baskets. The horsetail genus (Equisetum) is called scouring rush, or Dutch rush, because the plants' silica-laden stalks are used for scouring metal and other hard surfaces. Flowering rush is Butomus umbellatus (family Butomaceae). The sweet rush, or sweet flag, is Acorus calamus (family Acoraceae).

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