getaway

American  

[get-uh-way] / ˈgɛt əˌweɪ /

noun

• getaways
  plural

1. a getting away or fleeing; an escape.

2. the start of a race.

   a fast getaway.

3. a place where one escapes for relaxation, vacation, etc., or a period of time for such recreation.

   a little seaside getaway; a two-week getaway in the Bahamas.

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adjective

1. used as a means of escape or fleeing.

   a stolen getaway car.

2. used for occasional relaxation, retreat, or reclusion.

   a weekend getaway house.

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• getaways
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of getaway

First recorded in 1850–55; noun use of verb phrase get away

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Explanation

A getaway is a speedy escape, like the getaway bank robbers make when they flee the crime scene in a car. The word getaway is so often used for fleeing criminals that it's also a way to describe the vehicle they use: "Follow that getaway car!" A completely different type of getaway is a vacation, like your family's weekend getaway to the Catskills last summer. The "escape" meaning is older, and it originally referred to foxes that eluded hunters.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

getaway getaways

Once members of the crowd realised they were being mocked, Baron Cohen was escorted into a getaway vehicle as an angry crowd "started pounding on the vehicle with their fists".

From BBC ● Oct. 20, 2026

At the Louvre, staff are still discussing when and how to put the theft’s lone survivor back on public view: Empress Eugenie’s 19th-century crown, which thieves dropped and crumpled outside the museum during their getaway.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 15, 2026

The two key suspects include a 29-year-old, who was charged after investigators recovered DNA from a bag left behind during the getaway.

From Barron's ● Oct. 12, 2026

Errol Flynn was poised for one more getaway.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026

I was inches away from a clean getaway, until I made the mistake of telling my principal that I was planning to leave.

From "The Freedom Writers Diary" by The Freedom Writers

The mother-of-two posted pictures of skiing trips, safaris and romantic European getaways on her Facebook page and boasted she was "living and loving life one adventure at a time".

From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026

Meanwhile, the cost of flying jumped during the key month for summer getaways.

From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2026

Everyone else receives bronze-tier getaways that include two nights in a variety of U.S. cities, and Mystery Vacations strives to sweeten the deals when possible, Jaura said.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 13, 2026

Expect Americans to take fewer vacations or opt for smaller getaways closer to home as a result, Gus Faucher, PNC chief economist, tells Barron’s.

From Barron's ● Apr. 30, 2026

He’d practiced fast getaways, fantasized he was revving a powerful engine that left a skid mark and dust behind.

From "The Last Last-Day-of-Summer" by Lamar Giles

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