こんな意味もあったの？ ー run

アメリカ・ニューヨークではペーパータオルの品薄状態が続いているようです。

新型コロナウィルス感染症の拡大の影響で一時品切れになったのですが、その後も店頭に並ぶと同時に売り切れるというような状況が続いているそうです。


New York (CNN Business) — The paper towel shortage in the United States didn't stop in the spring.

Although finding paper towels for sale hasn't been quite as difficult as it was when the pandemic first hit the United States, finding them — especially at a normal price — still isn't always easy.

Paper towels have been in and out of stock on Amazon, Costco and local stores. And when paper towels are available, customers can't always get the brand they want.

Part of the reason for the shortage is people keep hoarding them: there was a massive surge in sales of Bounty paper towels in July, Procter & Gamble reported, as customers swept them off store shelves.
(Alexis Benveniste. Paper towel shortage: Why it's hard to find paper towels again. CNN. September 13, 2020.)


品薄の理由は勿論顧客による買い占めに原因がありますが、メーカーの生産体制にも一因があるようです。

多くのメーカーではいわゆるリーン方式による生産体制（lean manufacturing）を取っており、実際に売れた分だけを生産する（つまり出て行った分だけを補充する）という方針を取っていますが、それだと急な需要の変動に応えられないということのようです。

記事は以下のように続きます。


But the shortage could also have something to do with the way companies produce the paper towels. Lean manufacturing, in which companies make only as much product as they believe customers will buy on a given day -- has borne the brunt of the blame for the shortage. Last month, the Wall Street Journal published an article called "Why are there still not enough paper towels?" laying blame primarily on paper towel manufacturers building their operations to keep costs to a minimum.

Lean manufacturing is not unique to the paper towel industry -- over the past several decades, it has become prevalent in auto manufacturing, fast-fashion clothing makers and many other industries. But when there's a run on a product, shortages happen. Paper towel manufacturers were left unprepared, as their operations were not built for a pandemic.
(ibid.)


上記の部分で、


But when there's a run on a product, shortages happen.


という箇所がありますが、ここの"run"の意味を取り上げてみましょう。

明らかに名詞として使われています。

動詞としても名詞としても数多い意味の中から、当てはまるのは、


A series of unexpected and urgent demands, as by depositors or customers
(American Heritage Dictionary)


という意味ですが、辞書中もほとんど最後の方に載っている定義です。

英和辞書では、大需要とか大売れ行き、（銀行における）取付け、という意味で載っています。

目的語には前置詞onを取ります。