If someone gives you the runaround, they will not give you a clear yes or no. They send you to another desk, ask you to wait, tell you to come back tomorrow, or talk and talk without deciding — on purpose, because they do not want to help you, or they want to wear you out. You use it when you feel annoyed: “The shop just gave me the runaround.” It is informal. The picture underneath is of being made to run around from person to person and never arriving at an answer. Though actually, the word almost never stands alone as a verb; English speakers say give someone the runaround, not “they runaround me.” It is different from being honestly busy: the point is that the delay feels deliberate. You have a problem; they keep you moving and never settle it.

踢皮球、推託（give someone the runaround：故意不給準確答覆，把人打發來打發去）