away

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[adverb] (1) moving from one place to another, further place: The dog ran away when I tried to wash it. • Can you put your stuff away? I want to set the table.
(2) not at home or in the usual place: Martin is away all week. Can I take a message? • Who feeds the bird when you’re away?
[away + from: preposition] at a distance: Do you mind if I sit away from the door? • I use my laptop when I’m away from the office.

↓ Grammar patterns | Collocations | Set Phrases ↓

Grammar patterns:

1 verb | + away

We watched as the ship sailed away.
Go away! Leave me alone!
She stopped talking and looked away.
The music died away.
All the snow has melted away.

♦ to talk about things going to a place further from here, or moving in a different direction, or disappearing

She worked away all morning, and finished all her assignments.
They stayed up half the night, chatting away.

♦ to emphasize that an activity continues

2 verb | + NP | + away
verb | + away | + NP

Put your toys away and come and have dinner.
They still haven’t taken away the rubbish.
Some people hide their money away.
He shut himself away and refused to see anyone.

♦ to talk about things being removed, or put in a safe or enclosed place

3 (amount) | + away

The nearest shops are two miles away.
Is the train station a long way away?
Our summer holidays are only three weeks away.

♦ to say how far it is to a place or to a future event

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Collocations:

Away is often used in Grammar pattern 1 with verbs of movement. Some common phrasal verbs that belong to this pattern are: back away, break away, come away, creep away, fall away, get away, go away, move away, pass away, run away.

As I raised my voice the stranger backed away.
Sometimes you just have to get away from it all.
Her father passed away (= died) last week.

Phrasal verbs that belong to Grammar pattern 2 include: clear (something) away, give (something) away, put (something) away, shut (something) away, take (something) away, throw (something) away, tidy (something) away, be carried away (by something).

Before she died she gave away all her jewellery.
Isn’t it time you threw away those old boots?
I was so carried away by the music that I didn’t notice the time.

There are some three-word phrasal verbs with away:

If you do away with something, you remove it or destroy it completely.
If you get away with a crime, you are not caught or suspected.
If you let something, like an emotion, run away with you, you fail to control it.
If you walk away from a problem or a situation, you stop dealing with it.

Away combines with from to form a phrasal preposition:

We were just two goals away from winning the match.
Please stay away from the edge of the cliff.

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Set phrases:

• right away / straight away = immediately

Can you scan this photo for me? ~ Sure. I’ll do it right away.
I’ve phoned a taxi. It’ll be here straight away.

• far and away

This is far and away the best film he’s ever made.

♦ to emphasize how great the difference is between things.

• there’s no getting away from (the fact) = you can’t deny (the fact)

There’s no getting away from the fact that the summer’s are getting hotter.

• ‘fire away!’

Do you mind if I ask you a few questions? ~ Fire away!

♦ to give someone permission to ask you something.

• ‘get away’

I’ve never been in a plane. ~ Get away!

♦ to show surprise at what someone has said.

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