runway

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈrʌn.weɪ/^[1]

Etymology

It is formed from run and way.^[2][3]

Earliest recorded meaning

The usual track of an animal, especially of deer, in American English: 1828 in Merriam-Webster, 1833 in Etymonline and the OED.^[3][2][4]

Semantic evolution

A place for fowls to run is from 1871, the bed of a stream from 1874,^[4] and an artificial sloping or level track from 1883.^[2][4] A groove in which something slides is from 1890.^[4] The airfield sense, a prepared surface for taking off and landing, is by 1923.^[2][4]

Timeline

• 1828 – an animal's track (US).^[3]
• 1874 – a stream bed.^[4]
• 1883 – an artificial track.^[2][4]
• 1923 – an airfield runway.^[2][4]

Modern meaning

Noun

1. A strip of level, usually paved ground on which aircraft take off and land.
2. A narrow platform reaching from a stage into the audience, as at a fashion show; a catwalk.
3. A path or track over which something runs.
4. The channel of a stream.
5. (US, Canada) A chute down which logs are slid.

Related words

• run
• way
• airstrip

References

1. ^ Jones, Daniel (2011), Cambridge English Pronouncing Dictionary, 18th ed., ed. Peter Roach, Jane Setter and John Esling, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press
2. ^ a b c d e f Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
3. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
4. ^ a b c d e f g h Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press