He ran quickly to catch the bus before it left.

Meaning: This sentence describes a person's attempt to board a bus before it departs. It means he was in a hurry and wanted to make sure he didn't miss the bus.

Choice of Words: Ran means to move quickly by taking long steps. Quickly means at a fast pace or speed. Catch means to intercept or seize something. Bus means a large vehicle that carries passengers.

Alternative Expressions

The boy sprinted to board the bus prior to its departure.

Meaning: This sentence means that the young male person ran at a very fast pace in order to get on the bus before it left.

Choice of Words: The boy is a noun phrase that refers to the subject of the sentence, in this case, a young male person. Sprinted is a verb that means to run at a very fast pace. To board is a verb that means to get on or enter a vehicle. The bus is a noun that refers to the vehicle that the boy is trying to get on. Prior to is a preposition that means earlier in time than something else. Its departure is a noun phrase that refers to the time when the bus will leave.

He dashed to the bus stop to hop on the bus before it pulled away.

Meaning: This sentence means that the person ran very quickly to the bus stop in order to get on the bus before it moved away from the place where the person was.

Choice of Words: He is a pronoun that refers to the subject of the sentence, in this case, the person who is running. Dashed is a verb that means to run very quickly. To the bus stop is a prepositional phrase that indicates the destination of the running. To hop on is a verb phrase that means to get on or enter a vehicle quickly. The bus is a noun that refers to the vehicle that the person is trying to get on. Before is a preposition that means earlier in time than something else. It pulled away is a verb phrase that means to move away from a place.

Related Expressions