runner

The word runner commonly refers to someone who regularly runs for exercise, often as a hobby. The word jogger is sometimes used to mean the same thing, but some runners don’t like to be called joggers (for various reasons).

In the context of the sport of track, the word runner refers to one of the contestants in a race (less commonly called a racer). There are different kinds of runners depending on the kind of race, including sprinters, long distance runners, marathoners, and cross-country runners. An athlete who participates in track events might say that they run track.

In baseball, a runner is more commonly called a base runner. In football, a runner is often called a ball-carrier, a general term for whichever offensive player has the ball and is running with it (often the running back).

In some contexts, the word runner refers to a person who gets and delivers things, such as messenger, a courier, or a smuggler (as in gun runner and drug runner).

The word runner can also refer to a long and narrow stretch of carpet, such as for a stairway or hall, or a decorative strip of fabric that runs the length of a table (this is typically called a table runner).

In restaurants, a food runner (or just runner) is a member of the serving staff whose job is to assist the servers, especially by bringing food to the diners. While food runners may be called servers, such as by diners, they’re usually not the ones taking orders. Some of the responsibilities of a food runner may be the same as those of a busser.

Runner is a common word with widely varying meanings and uses.

Here are some examples of runner in a sentence:

• I’ve always liked to run, but I had never considered myself a “runner” until I started entering 5Ks. 
• My college had a very small track team, so I was both a sprinter and a long distance runner.
• As an intern, you’ll be doing a lot of random jobs, but you’ll be more than just a runner getting people lunch and coffee—you’ll be working on real projects.