away

[ uh-wey ]

adverb

1. from this or that place; off:

   to go away.

2. aside; to another place; in another direction:

   to turn your eyes away; to turn away customers

3. far; apart:

   away back; away from the subject.

4. out of one's possession or use:

   to give money away.

5. out of existence or notice; into extinction:

   to fade away; to idle away the morning.

6. incessantly or relentlessly; repeatedly:

   He kept hammering away.

7. without hesitation:

   Fire away.

adjective

1. absent; gone:

   to be away from home.

2. distant:

   six miles away.

3. immediately off and on the way:

   The order was given and he was away.

4. Sports. played in a ball park, arena, or the like, other than the one that is or is assumed to be the center of operations of a team: Compare home ( def ).

   winners in their last three away games.

5. Baseball. having been put out:

   with two away in the top of the seventh.

6. Golf.
   1. (of a golf ball) lying farthest from the hole.
   2. (of a golfer) having hit such a ball and being required to play first.

verb phrase

1. 1. to get rid of; abolish; stop.
   2. to kill:

      Bluebeard did away with all his wives.

away

/ əˈweɪ /

adverb

1. from a particular place; off

   to swim away

2. in or to another, usual, or proper place

   to put toys away

3. apart; at a distance

   to keep away from strangers

4. out of existence

   the music faded away

5. indicating motion, displacement, transfer, etc, from a normal or proper place, from a person's own possession, etc

   to give away money

   to turn one's head away

6. indicating activity that is wasteful or designed to get rid of something

   to sleep away the hours

7. continuously

   laughing away

   fire away

8. away with
   away with a command for a person to go or be removed

   away with you

   away with him to prison!

9. far and away
   far and away by a very great margin

   far and away the biggest meal he'd ever eaten

10. from away
    from away from a part of Canada other than Newfoundland

adjective

1. not present

   away from school

2. distant

   he is a good way away

3. having started; released

   bombs away!

   he was away before sunrise

4. also prenominal sport played on an opponent's ground

   an away game

5. golf (of a ball or player) farthest from the hole
6. baseball (of a player) having been put out
7. horse racing relating to the outward portion or first half of a race

noun

1. sport a game played or won at an opponent's ground

interjection

1. an expression of dismissal

Word History and Origins

Origin of away¹

First recorded before 950; Middle English; Old English aweg, reduction of on weg; equivalent to a- ¹ + way ¹

Word History and Origins

Origin of away¹

Old English on weg on way

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. where away? (of something sighted from a ship) in which direction? where?
2. away with,
   1. take away:

      Away with him!

   2. go away! leave!:

      Away with you!

More idioms and phrases containing away

see back away ; bang away ; blow away ; break away ; by far (and away) ; carry away ; cart off (away) ; cast away ; clear out (away) ; die away ; do away with ; draw away ; eat away ; explain away ; fade out (away) ; fall away ; fire away ; fool away ; fritter away ; get away ; get away with ; give away ; go away ; hammer away ; lay aside (away) ; make away with ; out and away ; pass away ; peg away at ; piss away ; plug away at ; pull away ; put away ; right away ; run away ; run away with ; salt away ; send away ; shy away from ; slink away ; slip out (away) ; sock away ; spirit away ; square away ; squirrel away ; stow away ; take away from ; take one's breath away ; tear away ; throw away ; tuck away ; turn away ; walk away from ; walk off (away) with ; waste away ; wear off (away) ; whale away ; when the cat's away ; while away .

Example Sentences

The real challenge would be we’re four weeks away from election.

From Washington Post

I think that is something this industry makes you look away from.

From Eater

This is a situation that they thought they had the upper hand on politically, but that advantage seems to be slipping away.

From Washington Post

It would go away without the vaccine, George, but it’s going to go away a lot faster with it.

From Washington Post

It’s probably going to go away a lot faster now because of the vaccine.

From Washington Post

Something like fluoride, which is too small for normal filters, yanks away that feeling of agency.

From The Daily Beast

He observes the bodies floating away on the river, pulling on his cigarette with a sneer.

From The Daily Beast

So it might be me projecting my desires onto Archer to want to just get away from work for a few weeks.

From The Daily Beast

But sources said that the evidence so far is pointing away from an ISIS connection.

From The Daily Beast

In this war, the targeting is often happening on computer monitors thousands of miles away, capturing images from drones.

From The Daily Beast

It was a decayed house of superb proportions, but of a fashion long passed away.

From Project Gutenberg

She walked away toward another door, which was masked with a curtain that she lifted.

From Project Gutenberg

If you throw away this chance, you will both richly deserve to be hanged, as I sincerely trust you will be.

From Project Gutenberg

The bear laughed and joined his companion, and the torpedo thundered away.

From Project Gutenberg

Nevertheless the evening and the night passed away without incident.

From Project Gutenberg

Related Words

• abroad
• absent
• aside
• distant
• elsewhere
• off
• over