Run through means to go quickly over a set of points (a list, a plan, the main changes) or to rehearse a talk from start to finish. In the first meaning, you keep it brief, without details: run through the agenda. In the second, you check how everything sounds before you face an audience: run through the presentation.
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run through + list/plan/main points; run through + speech/presentation/scene; a (quick) run-through (noun)
- At the start of the meeting, Sara ran through the main changes to the schedule.
- The band ran through the new songs twice before the doors opened.
- Let me run through the safety rules before we start the climb.
What changed
First versionLet's repeat the presentation once before the client arrives.
RevisionLet's run through the presentation once before the client arrives.
Repeat may seem like the right verb for practising a talk. But repeat the presentation means giving it again to an audience. A practice for yourself before the client arrives is run through.
Run through is quick, without stopping: Let me run through the main points. Go through is slow, point by point, with discussion: We went through every question on the form. With a hyphen, run-through is a noun meaning a rehearsal: We had a quick run-through before the show.
Your turn
Before the conference, she ___ her speech twice while a colleague timed her.
Show the answer
ran through — A colleague was timing her, so she was saying the speech aloud from beginning to end. That is a rehearsal: ran through. Looked through would mean she read the text silently, and nobody times that kind of reading.
Describe how you prepared for a talk, a job interview or an important call. Say what exactly you rehearsed and how many times.
Before my job interview, I ran through my answers about teamwork three times with my flatmate.
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