From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishdashdash1 /dæʃ/ ●●○ verb 1 RUNHURRY[intransitive always + adverb/preposition] to go or run somewhere very quickly Olive dashed into the room, grabbed her bag, and ran out again.► see thesaurus at hurry, run2 → dash somebody’s hopes3 → (I) must dash/(I) have to dash4 [intransitive, transitive always + adverb/preposition] writtenTHROW to throw or push something violently against something, especially so that it breaksdash something against/on something The ship was dashed against the rocks.dash against Waves were dashing against the sea wall.5 → dash it (all)! → dash off→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
dash• A chipmunk dashed across the grass.• Kids were dashing across the playground chasing a ball.• Suddenly he dashed across the street, dodging the traffic, and jumped on to a small motorbike.• General Lee, on horseback, dashed among the fugitives and implored them to rally.• I dashed downstairs to answer the phone.• He just dashed into the office and then dashed out again without speaking to anyone.• We only have a few moments, because Heidi's got to dash off soon.• She dashed off to the airport and just managed to catch her plane.• Katze dashed on to the bridge of the Raubvogel, gasping for breath.• Jasper dashed out of sight behind a stump between the two.• Gillian saw two men dash past, but they didn't notice her.• I sat by Toby, and stopped myself asking the questions which were dashing through my head.• He dashed up the short front path at a run and shot through the door Meredith held open for him.• I eventually found the place, and dashed up the stairs.dashdash2 ●●○ noun 1 small amountLITTLE/NOT MUCH [singular] a) a small amount of a substance that is added to something elsedash of Add salt, pepper and a dash of vinegar. b) a small amount of a quality that is added to something elsedash of Add a dash of romance to your life with a trip to Paris.2 RUNrun quickly [countable usually singular] an occasion when someone runs somewhere very quickly in order to get away from something or someone, or in order to reach themmake a dash for something He made a dash for the door. The prisoners made a dash for freedom. It’s pouring with rain – we’ll have to make a dash for it. When the alarm went there was a mad dash for the exit.3 lineSLA [countable] a line ( – ) used in writing to separate two closely related parts of a sentence, as for example, in the sentence ‘Go home – they’re waiting for you.’4 sound [countable]SLA a long sound or flash of light used for sending messages in Morse code → dot5 x-refcar [countable] American English a dashboard 6 style [uncountable]BRAVE old-fashioned style, energy, and courage in someone such as a soldier7 → cut a dashCOLLOCATIONS – Meaning 2: an occasion when someone runs somewhere very quickly in order to get away from something or someone, or in order to reach themverbsmake a dash for somethingThe rain had almost stopped so we decided to make a dash for home.make a dash for it (=run very quickly to escape or to reach a place)He turned and made a dash for it but the police officer caught him.adjectivesa quick dashHave I got time to make a quick dash to the shops?a sudden dashHe made a sudden dash for the door.a mad/frantic dash (=very fast, usually because you are worried about something)‘Something’s burning’, she said, making a mad dash for the kitchen.a headlong dash (=without looking where you are going)I made a headlong dash up the street but just missed the bus.a last-minute dash (=very fast, because you have very little time remaining)We only just caught our plane, after a last-minute dash to the airport. Examples from the Corpus
dash• I've put a sprinkling of brown sugar and a dash of milk on it.• Elisabeth had made a dash for fresh air and Mitzi's arm met that of Elisabeth's chair.• This is done by clicking the mouse pointer either on the top right-hand upward pointing arrow or the extreme top left-hand dash.• At Freeport, the Jones Beach stop, was the mad dash for the bus.• For example, to print a line of dashes across the screen, press Esc, type 64, then press -.• Whatever type of dash you use, remember that consistency is key.• Patrick had briefed him on the reasons for their sudden turnaround in Bucharest and the dash back to the Channel.• The difficulty arises from ministerial unwillingness to curb the dash for gas or to cut-off the cross-Channel interconnector.• the 40-yard dashdash of• Add a dash of salt to the beans.• It's fiction with a dash of history.make a dash for something• Elisabeth had made a dash for fresh air and Mitzi's arm met that of Elisabeth's chair.• He made a dash for the big front door and threw himself into the gloomy chill of the hall.• Afraid she might give in quickly and completely if she stayed here any longer, she made a dash for the door.• But it was hard to ignore hard green crab apples lobbing in, and finally my sister made a dash for him.• As the fire spread up the walls, Stan made a dash for safety.• He intended to make a dash for his room and wedge a broken chair-leg under the door to keep the monster out.• In case anything went wrong, I was prepared to make a dash for Armstrong.• She hung by the open door, ready to make a dash for it at the first sign of trouble.• Abruptly the woman speeded up, making a dash for the door.Origin dash1 (1200-1300) Probably from the sound of something breaking when hit 