{"id":16894,"date":"2022-02-18T13:46:19","date_gmt":"2022-02-18T13:46:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/?p=16894"},"modified":"2023-09-18T19:17:02","modified_gmt":"2023-09-18T19:17:02","slug":"running-numbers","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/running-numbers\/","title":{"rendered":"&#8220;Running Numbers&#8221; \u2014 Meaning, Origin &#038; Context"},"content":{"rendered":"<style>img#mv-trellis-img-1::before{padding-top:56.25%; }img#mv-trellis-img-1{display:block;}img#mv-trellis-img-2::before{padding-top:140.625%; }img#mv-trellis-img-2{display:block;}<\/style><p>One of the interesting things about language is how its meaning changes over time.<\/p>\n<p>In some cases, such as &ldquo;literally,&rdquo; words can take on the opposite of their original meaning.<\/p>\n<p>In addition to this, many words have a somewhat darker origin than the meaning they have today.<\/p>\n<p>Today, we&rsquo;ll take a look at an example of a common expression that seems to have a surprising background.<\/p>\n<div class=\"content-box-grey\">\n  <strong>Table of Contents<\/strong><br>\n  &nbsp;<br>\n  <strong><a href=\"#what-is-the-meaning-of-running-numbers\">What is the meaning of &ldquo;running numbers&rdquo;?<\/a><\/strong><br>\n  &nbsp;<br>\n  <strong><a href=\"#illegal-lotteries-and-the-surprising-origin-of-running-numbers\">Illegal lotteries and the surprising origin of &ldquo;running numbers&rdquo;<\/a><\/strong><br>\n  &nbsp;<br>\n  <strong><a href=\"#how-running-numbers-is-used-today\">How &ldquo;running numbers&rdquo; is used today<\/a><\/strong>\n<\/div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"what-is-the-meaning-of-running-numbers\">What is the meaning of &ldquo;running numbers&rdquo;?<\/h2>\n<p><strong>The term &ldquo;Running numbers&rdquo; originates in illegal lotteries, where a runner would literally &ldquo;run&rdquo; the chosen numbers from an official drawing to the crime syndicate organizing the lottery. These days, however, &ldquo;running numbers&rdquo; is simply an expression that refers to doing some kind of calculation.<\/strong><br>\n&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"illegal-lotteries-and-the-surprising-origin-of-running-numbers\">Illegal lotteries and the surprising origin of &ldquo;running numbers&rdquo;<\/h2>\n<p>Today, the phrase &ldquo;running numbers&rdquo; or &ldquo;running the numbers&rdquo; has a very ordinary meaning.<\/p>\n<p>However, to understand its original meaning, we need to go back in time to the 1920s.<\/p>\n<p>In the 1920s and 1930s, gambling was illegal in the United States.<\/p>\n<p>Of course, as anybody knows, making something illegal creates a very profitable black market run by criminals.<\/p>\n<p>That may seem surprising, but if you take a minute to let it sink in, it will make sense.<\/p>\n<p>Enter the world of &ldquo;the numbers game.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>In the numbers game, a crime syndicate would hold a lottery that anybody could enter by picking any three-digit number they liked.<\/p>\n<p>These numbers would be tied ahead of time to a specific and public event, such as the last three digits of that day&rsquo;s stock market closing or the order of horses in a race.<\/p>\n<p>If the number you bet on matched the day&rsquo;s official numbers, you would win a 600:1 payout.<\/p>\n<p>That means if you bet a dime, you could earn as much as $60.00 (the equivalent of $840 in today&rsquo;s currency).<\/p>\n<p>Like most illegal activities, the risks for participating in the numbers game were high and many.<\/p>\n<p>On the other hand, the payout was also incredibly high, and the crime syndicates also made a lot of money organizing the lotteries.<\/p>\n<p>Because of the high stakes, the organizers would hire someone to act as a &ldquo;runner,&rdquo; memorizing or otherwise writing down the bets and that day&rsquo;s official numbers and then delivering them to the syndicate&rsquo;s central office.<\/p>\n<p>Incidentally, the phrase &ldquo;high stakes&rdquo; here nicely illustrates <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/no-pun-intended-meaning\/\">the meaning of &ldquo;no pun intended&rdquo;<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Of course, the numbers game also greatly enriched communities of color and other poor neighborhoods.<\/p>\n<p>One so-called &ldquo;numbers man&rdquo; in Pittsburgh, for example, <strong><a href=\"http:\/\/northbysouth.kenyon.edu\/2000\/baseball\/Numbers.htm\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">was not viewed as a criminal by those who gambled with him<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n<p>Likewise, black business owners who ran numbers games could and did use their profits to bring amenities and entertainment to their area that would not otherwise have been possible.<\/p>\n<p>Originally, the expression &ldquo;running numbers&rdquo; referred to the process of learning what that day&rsquo;s selected numbers were and passing that information along to the crime syndicate responsible for organizing the illegal lottery.<\/p>\n<p>More generally, the expression referred to anyone involved with illegal gambling.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2 id=\"how-running-numbers-is-used-today\">How &ldquo;running numbers&rdquo; is used today<\/h2>\n<p><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-16914 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today.jpeg\" alt=\"Running Numbers Meaning Today\" width=\"1280\" height=\"720\" srcset=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today.jpeg 854w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-300x169.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-1024x576.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-768x432.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-480x270.jpeg 480w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-720x405.jpeg 720w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-320x180.jpeg 320w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-735x413.jpeg 735w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-335x188.jpeg 335w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-347x195.jpeg 347w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-520x293.jpeg 520w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-640x360.jpeg 640w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-960x540.jpeg 960w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-1080x608.jpeg 1080w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 760px) calc(100vw - 20px), 720px\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today.jpeg\"><\/noscript><img loading=\"eager\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-16914 size-full eager-load\" src=\"data:image\/svg+xml,%3Csvg%20xmlns='http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg'%20viewBox='0%200%201280%20720'%3E%3Crect%20width='1280'%20height='720'%20style='fill:%23e3e3e3'\/%3E%3C\/svg%3E\" alt=\"Running Numbers Meaning Today\" width=\"1280\" height=\"720\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 760px) calc(100vw - 20px), 720px\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today.jpeg\" id=\"mv-trellis-img-1\" data-src=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today.jpeg\" data-srcset=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today.jpeg 854w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-300x169.jpeg 300w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-1024x576.jpeg 1024w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-768x432.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-480x270.jpeg 480w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-720x405.jpeg 720w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-320x180.jpeg 320w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-735x413.jpeg 735w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-335x188.jpeg 335w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-347x195.jpeg 347w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-520x293.jpeg 520w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-640x360.jpeg 640w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-960x540.jpeg 960w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Today-1080x608.jpeg 1080w\" data-svg=\"1\" data-trellis-processed=\"1\"><\/p>\n<p>Most people today don&rsquo;t know about this original meaning of the expression &ldquo;running numbers,&rdquo; but rather use it to say that they need to perform some calculation.<\/p>\n<p>You will most likely hear this in a business setting, often in budget discussions.<\/p>\n<p>For example, if someone proposes a new project, the person in charge of the budget might say that it sounds like a good idea, but they have to run the numbers first.<\/p>\n<p>All this means is that they need to check and see if there is enough money.<\/p>\n<p>Outside of a business setting, this phrase is also used in statistics and other situations involving some number.<\/p>\n<p>It might refer to the process of double-checking a vote, making sure measurements are correct, or many other number-related activities.<\/p>\n<p>Although it seems strange to think about this expression changing so much from its origin, this is likely more a case of two similar expressions being confused.<\/p>\n<p>When you &ldquo;run numbers&rdquo; in a business or statistical sense, it&rsquo;s implied that you are running them through a machine, like a calculator or computer.<\/p>\n<p>Because &ldquo;run&rdquo; can be interpreted as physically moving from one place to another or inserting data into a machine, the two expressions seem identical even though they are slightly different.<\/p>\n<p>Regardless, unless the person saying they are &ldquo;running numbers&rdquo; or &ldquo;running the numbers&rdquo; is involved in organized crime, chances are good that this second meaning of the expression is what they intended to say.<\/p>\n<p><noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-16919 size-full\" src=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context.jpeg\" alt=\"Running Numbers Meaning Origin Context\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1800\" srcset=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context.jpeg 341w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context-213x300.jpeg 213w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context-728x1024.jpeg 728w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context-768x1080.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context-1092x1536.jpeg 1092w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context-735x1034.jpeg 735w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context-238x335.jpeg 238w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context-247x347.jpeg 247w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context-370x520.jpeg 370w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context-455x640.jpeg 455w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context-546x768.jpeg 546w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context-683x960.jpeg 683w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1280px) 100vw, 1280px\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context.jpeg\"><\/noscript><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone wp-image-16919 size-full lazyload\" src=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context.jpeg\" alt=\"Running Numbers Meaning Origin Context\" width=\"1280\" height=\"1800\" srcset=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context.jpeg 341w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context-213x300.jpeg 213w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context-728x1024.jpeg 728w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context-768x1080.jpeg 768w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context-1092x1536.jpeg 1092w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context-735x1034.jpeg 735w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context-238x335.jpeg 238w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context-247x347.jpeg 247w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context-370x520.jpeg 370w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context-455x640.jpeg 455w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context-546x768.jpeg 546w, https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context-683x960.jpeg 683w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1280px) 100vw, 1280px\" data-pin-media=\"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/Running-Numbers-Meaning-Origin-Context.jpeg\" id=\"mv-trellis-img-2\" data-trellis-processed=\"1\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>One of the interesting things about language is how its meaning changes over time. In some cases, such as &ldquo;literally,&rdquo; words can take on the opposite of their original meaning. In addition to this, many words have a somewhat darker origin than the meaning they have today. Today, we&rsquo;ll take a look at an example &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":16917,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"disable-in-feed":false,"article-schema-type":"","disable-critical-css":false,"_convertkit_action_broadcast_export":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[35,1117],"tags":[1211],"class_list":["post-16894","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-english","category-vocabulary","tag-running-numbers"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16894","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16894"}],"version-history":[{"count":25,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16894\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27395,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16894\/revisions\/27395"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16917"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16894"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16894"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/linguaholic.com\/linguablog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16894"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}