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Something that “run through sb's head/mind” means in Cambridge dictionary as follows:

"If something is running through your head/mind, you cannot stop thinking about it or singing it silently: I've had that tune running through my head all day."

The dictionary doesn't list a second meaning but I heard it used in a different way on a YouTube video:

"If you are an ESL student where English is your second language and you say “hiking is funny” a native speaker will run through his mind "Why is hiking funny?” it doesn't really make sense. Or “Going to an amusement park is fun” that's the correct way to say it."

Tutor Nick P Lesson (5) What Is the Difference Between Fun & Funny

Is the second sentence true? Can I say "I run through my mind my girlfriend" or "My girlfriend run through my mind", or maybe both of them are true.

"Object + run through + one's mind" or "Subject + run through + one's mind"? Which one of them are true?

Many thanks in advance.

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    The sentence is a hot mess. Step away from the sentence. It is not a good example of being clear. Commented Feb 14, 2021 at 0:38
  • (1) As a general rule, you should link to everything you quote, including dictionary definitions. (2) As another general rule, if you want to know what something means, you should look in more than one dictionary. Commented Feb 14, 2021 at 16:20
  • I believe that my question is crystall clear. I just wonder if ı can write "I run though my mind something" . Why did you close my topic? It's not the aim of this page?
    – user414588
    Commented Feb 15, 2021 at 12:12
  • To communicate with users who have commented, you need to write this @YosefBaskin. You can only "ping" one user at a time. I have flagged your post to the attention of moderators asking for it to be reopened, and there are three other people who also agree. However, there are other users who believe the question is still off-topic and have cast their votes to keep it closed. I do not know their reasons. To flag your post, click on the link Flag which you should see just below the question, and explain to the moderators why you feel it should be reopened.
    – Mari-Lou A
    Commented Feb 16, 2021 at 8:03
  • @user414588 You've made this into a good question: thank you! I think we probably need to move it elsewhere, and so that you don't lose track of it, please register your account here. You should be able to see and use a Register button at the top of each page on the site. Commented Feb 16, 2021 at 10:12

1 Answer 1

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"run through my mind" would indicate a set of thoughts that came to you without you choosing to deliberately consider them.

It would be unnatural to say, "I run through my mind my girlfriend" or "My girlfriend run through my mind".

Something like this would be okay though: "while at work, thoughts of my girlfriend were running through my mind."

Perhaps the crucial difference is that 'running through my mind' shows a level of distraction from your main thoughts. In your first example, you are distracted by a tune. In the second example, the native speaker is being distracted from the topic of hiking by the misuse of the word 'funny'.

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