run deep
Be strongly rooted
Run deep describes feelings, qualities, or conditions that are profound, intense, or firmly established beneath the surface.
The image is of water—a river that runs deep has more beneath than what's visible: Their animosity runs deep, Old loyalties run deep in this town.
The phrase suggests something not easily changed or overcome, rooted in history or character rather than circumstance.
- wellDug water source
- undercurrentFlow beneath the surface
- entrenchedFirmly established, resistant to change
- still watersMotionless bodies of water
- rootedFirmly established in place
foundational · archetypal · heartfelt · profound · marrow · bones · buried · generational · family ties · old wounds · river · core · inner life · metaphorical · feelings · abyssal · enduring · emotions
run deepsuperficial
Lacking depth or substance
shallow · skin-deep · surface-level · on the surface · thin
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