away
Language: English
Part of speech: adv
Pronunciation: enpr: ə-wā'
ipa: /əˈweɪ/
rhymes: -eɪ
homophone: aweigh
Etymology: From Middle English away, awey, awei, oway, o wey, on way, from Old English āweġ, onweġ (“away”), originally on weġ (“on one's way; onward; on”), equivalent to a- (“on”) + way.
Cognate with Scots awa, away (“away”), Old Frisian aweg, awei (“away”), Saterland Frisian wäch, wääge (“away”), Dutch weg (“away”), German weg (“away”), Danish væk (“away”), Swedish i väg (“away; off; along”).
Senses: examples: text: He went away on vacation.
text: The departure was not unduly prolonged.[…]Within the door Mrs. Spoker hastily imparted to Mrs. Love a few final sentiments[…]; a deep, guttural instigation to the horse; and the wheels of the waggonette crunched heavily away into obscurity.
ref: 1921, Ben Travers, chapter 5, in A Cuckoo in the Nest, Garden City, N.Y.: Doubleday, Page & Company, published 1925, →OCLC:
text: One of the hidden glories of Victorian engineering is proper drains. Isolating a city’s effluent and shipping it away in underground sewers has probably saved more lives than any medical procedure except vaccination.
ref: 2014 June 14, “It's a gas”, in The Economist, volume 411, number 8891:
glosses: From a place, hence.
examples: text: I tried to approach him, but he turned away.
glosses: Aside; off; in another direction.
examples: text: throw away, chuck away, toss away
glosses: Aside, so as to discard something.
examples: text: Christmas is only two weeks away.
text: While De Anza was exploring the Bay of San Francisco, seeking a site for the presidio, the American colonists on the eastern seaboard, three thousand miles away, were celebrating the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
ref: 1948, Carey McWilliams, North from Mexico / The Spanish-Speaking People of The United States, J. B. Lippincott Company, page 25:
text: From the ground, Colombo’s port does not look like much. Those entering it are greeted by wire fences, walls dating back to colonial times and security posts. For mariners leaving the port after lonely nights on the high seas, the delights of the B52 Night Club and Stallion Pub lie a stumble away.
ref: 2013 June 8, “The new masters and commanders”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8839, page 52:
glosses: At a stated distance in time or space.
examples: text: I'll dry the dishes and you put them away.
text: Please file away these documents.
glosses: In or to something's usual or proper storage place.
examples: text: The jewels were locked away in the safe.
text: He was shut away in the castle tower for six months.
glosses: In or to a secure or out-of-the-way place.
examples: text: fade away, die away
text: I'll sleep the rest of the day away/out and, hopefully, I'll manage to sleep this hangover off/away.
glosses: From a state or condition of being; out of existence.
examples: text: The weather has worn away the inscription, and it is no longer legible.
text: Please wipe away this spilled drink.
text: That's where tourists go to hear great Cuban bands and dance the night away.
glosses: So as to remove or use up something.
examples: text: Away! Be gone! And don't let me see you round here again!
text: 1933+, Fran Striker, The Lone Ranger, WXYZ-AM
Hi-yo Silver, away!
qualifier: by ellipsis
glosses: Come away; go away; take away.
raw_tags: as imperative
examples: text: She's been in her room all day, working away at her computer.
glosses: On; in continuance; without intermission or delay.
examples: text: You've got questions? Ask away!
text: I saw her whaling away at her detractors.
glosses: Without restraint.
Synonyms: sense: away from a place
word: at bay
sense: away from a place
word: off
sense: away from a place
word: off-
sense: away from a place
word: ab-
sense: away from a place
word: apo-
sense: away from a place
word: de-
sense: away from a place
word: out-