run rampant
Go wildly unconstrained
To run rampant is to spread or flourish unchecked, often destructively.
Disease runs rampant through a population without immunity.
Weeds run rampant in an untended garden.
Corruption runs rampant when oversight fails.
The phrase suggests something harmful growing beyond control: Misinformation runs rampant on social media.
Sometimes used more neutrally for anything proliferating freely: Speculation ran rampant after the announcement.
- infestOccupy harmfully en masse
- rampageViolent, destructive outburst
- wreak havocCause widespread destruction
- excessiveSurpassing reasonable bounds
- proliferateReproduce or spread swiftly
spread like wildfire · go viral · unchecked · unbridled · unrestrained · uncontrolled · let loose · overrun · engulf · explode · get out of hand · permeate · dominate · frenzy · invade · overflow · disrupt · flourish