away
away — adverb
1. leaving the place where you are now, or moving to a spot that is not here.
leaving the place where you are now, or moving to a spot that is not here.
Renata walked away from the bus stop and crossed the street.
verb of motion + away from + place
The frightened deer bounded away into the dark forest.
verb of motion + away into + place
The cat ran away as soon as the dog barked.
ran away — leaving quickly
Nikolai turned away when he saw his ex-girlfriend at the cafe.
Mira waved her friends away so she could finish the test in peace.
- walk away
- run away
- turn away
- move away
- step away
Grammar Patterns
verb + away
away from + noun
Usage Note
Frequently follows verbs of motion (walk, run, drive, move) and gesture verbs (push, pull, wave, turn). The destination is often introduced by 'from'.
Common Mistakes
2. used after a measure of distance to say how far one place lies from another in p
used after a measure of distance to say how far one place lies from another in physical space.
The new library is only two blocks away from my apartment.
[distance] + away from + place
Linnea lives just five minutes away by bicycle.
[time] + away by + transport
The nearest hospital is twenty kilometres away from the village.
[distance] + away from + place
Keep the candle a safe distance away from the curtains.
The mountains looked close, but they were actually fifty kilometers away.
- miles away
- kilometres away
- minutes away
- far away
- a long way away
Grammar Patterns
[number/measure] + away
away from + noun
Usage Note
Almost always preceded by a spatial measure (two miles, fifty kilometres, five minutes by bus). Distinguish from sense 5, which uses the same pattern but for time until a future event, not physical distance.
Common Mistakes
3. into a drawer, cupboard, box, or other place where things are kept tidy or safe.
into a drawer, cupboard, box, or other place where things are kept tidy or safe.
Nikolai put his clean shirts away in the bottom drawer.
put + object + away — into storage
Please lock the documents away in the office safe before you leave.
lock + object + away — secure storage
Grandma kept her old letters tucked away in a wooden box under the bed.
The librarian filed the new books away on the top shelf.
- put away
- tuck away
- lock away
- file away
- pack away
- stash away
- aside
stresses setting something to the side rather than into a closed spot
- out
taken from storage and made visible
Grammar Patterns
verb + (object) + away
put / file / lock + something + away
Usage Note
Common with 'put', 'tuck', 'file', 'lock', 'pack', 'stash'. Object usually goes between the verb and 'away'. Often implies the spot is closed, hidden, or safe.
Common Mistakes
4. little by little, until almost nothing or none of something is left.
little by little, until almost nothing or none of something is left.
The snow on the roof melted away under the morning sun.
melt away — gradual disappearance
Her childhood fears slowly faded away as she grew up.
fade away — slow loss over time
The old farmer wasted away after his wife passed.
waste away — losing health
Years of rain have worn the stone steps away.
wear + object + away
The crowd's anger died away once the mayor apologised.
- fade away
- melt away
- wear away
- die away
- waste away
- wither away
- back
in 'come back' — returning into existence
Grammar Patterns
verb + away — gradual loss
fade / melt / wear / waste + away
Usage Note
Always paired with verbs of slow change: melt, fade, wear, waste, die, wither, ebb. Subject is the thing being lost, not the agent. Distinguish from sense 1 (movement) — here nothing moves anywhere; it simply ceases to exist.
Common Mistakes
5. used after a length of time to say how long it is until a future event happens.
used after a length of time to say how long it is until a future event happens.
Mira's wedding is only three months away, and the dress still hasn't arrived.
[duration] + away — future event
The school holidays are still six weeks away.
The election is just ten days away, so the candidates are debating every night.
Retirement felt years away, but suddenly Dad turned sixty-four.
- weeks away
- months away
- days away
- years away
- just around the corner
- ago
the same gap measured into the past
Grammar Patterns
[time period] + away — future point
Usage Note
Subject is always a future event (a wedding, an exam, a holiday). Differs from sense 2 in that the measure before 'away' is a duration of time, not a physical distance.
Common Mistakes
6. not at home, school, or work because you are somewhere else, often for several d
not at home, school, or work because you are somewhere else, often for several days.
Dr. Viraj is away on a business trip until next Friday.
be + away + on + activity
Three students were away from class because of the flu.
be + away + from + place
Could you feed our cat while we're away?
The manager has been away all week, so nothing has been signed.
- away on holiday
- away on business
- away from home
- away from work
- away sick
Grammar Patterns
be + away
be + away + on/at + noun
Usage Note
Linked to the verb 'be' (or 'stay', 'go'), describing a temporary absence — typically a holiday, business trip, or illness rather than just stepping out for a moment.
Common Mistakes
7. without stopping, often with a lot of energy or enthusiasm.
without stopping, often with a lot of energy or enthusiasm.
The children chattered away in the back of the car the whole journey.
verb + away — continuous talking
Nikolai was hammering away in the garage all Sunday afternoon.
verb + away — busy ongoing work
The old clock ticked away on the kitchen wall.
verb + away — steady repetition
Maria scribbled away at her notebook while the lecturer talked.
- chatter away
- work away
- tick away
- hammer away
- scribble away
- knit away
- on
in 'work on' — neutral, lacks the lively flavour
- continuously
formal equivalent, used in writing
Grammar Patterns
verb + away — continuous action
Usage Note
Informal. Always after a verb describing a sustained activity (talk, work, write, play, knit, hammer, tick). The verb is usually intransitive in this pattern, and the action sounds lively rather than tiring.
Common Mistakes
away with…
idiomYou say this when you want something or someone to be removed or gone.
Away with these old chairs; they take up too much space.
Away with your excuses; I have heard enough already.
To do something that makes you feel fresh and energetic again.
A short run in the park blew the cobwebs away for Maya.
Diego cleared the cobwebs away with a cold shower this morning.
dance the night away
idiomTo spend the entire evening or night dancing.
Sara and her friends danced the night away at the wedding.
They danced the night away until the band stopped playing.
far and away
idiomBy a very large amount; clearly.
This is far and away the best pizza in town.
Aiden is far and away the fastest runner on the team.
right away/off
idiomImmediately; without any delay.
Please call the doctor right away if you feel worse.
Min knew right off that the answer was correct.
straight away
idiomImmediately; without any delay.
Brian started his homework straight away after dinner.
The teacher asked us to begin the test straight away.
away — adjective
1. describing a sports match held at the rival team's stadium rather than your own.
describing a sports match held at the rival team's stadium rather than your own.
Liverpool's away match against Real Madrid drew a huge television audience.
away + match — sports usage
An away win in Tokyo would secure the trophy for the visiting side.
away + win
Coach Diaz rested two strikers before the difficult away fixture in Munich.
The fans saved up for months to follow the team to every away game.
- away match
- away game
- away fixture
- away win
- away goal
- away kit
- away leg
- home
played at your own team's stadium
Grammar Patterns
away + match/game/fixture/win
Usage Note
Used only before a noun (attributive), and almost always with 'match', 'game', 'fixture', 'goal', 'win', 'leg', or 'kit'. The opposite is 'home'.
Common Mistakes
Word family
Synonym discussion
Sense: adverb/1
All four describe leaving a spot, but they differ in flavour. 'Away' is the neutral, all-purpose choice and is the only one that can also tell you the distance ('two miles away'). 'Off' suggests a sharper or more sudden departure, often with a sense of separation: 'the lid came off', 'the runner sped off'. 'Out' stresses leaving an enclosed space rather than the current spot — you walk 'out of the room', not 'away of the room'. 'Aside' means moving slightly to one side without really leaving: 'she stepped aside to let the nurse pass'. So Linnea can step 'aside' to make room, walk 'away' from the building, run 'off' in panic, or hurry 'out' of the lobby — each pictures a different exit.
Common collocations
Etymology
'Away' comes from Old English 'onweg' or 'aweg', a two-part phrase meaning 'on (the) way'. Speakers used it to picture someone setting off on a path, and over time the two halves blended into a single word and the original 'on' faded to just 'a-'. The same shift happened with sister words like 'aboard' and 'aside'. From the basic 'on the way' idea, English speakers stretched the word to cover distance ('three miles away'), absence ('she's away this week'), storage ('put it away') and slow disappearance ('fade away').