† awayv.
Obsolete.
intransitive. to away with: to tolerate, bear, endure (something); to get on or along with, to put up with (someone or something). Cf. away adv. 12a.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > calmness > patience > endure patiently [verb (transitive)] > bear with or tolerate
forbearc897
tholec950
bearOE
abidec1300
bidea1325
takec1330
suffer1340
wielda1375
to have patience with (also in, toward)c1384
supportc1384
to sit with ——c1400
sustainc1400
thulgec1400
acceptc1405
to away with1528
brook1530
well away1533
to bear with —1538
digest1553
to comport with1565
stand1567
purse?1571
to put up1573
well away1579
comport1588
fadge1592
abrook1594
to come away1594
to take up with1609
swallow1611
embracea1616
to pack up1624
concocta1627
to set down bya1630
to take with ——1632
tolerate1646
brook1658
stomach1677
pouch1819
1528 T. Paynell tr. Arnaldus de Villa Nova in Joannes de Mediolano Regimen Sanitatis Salerni sig. T.iv We se olde & feble craftes men, to do that stronger and yonger than they can nat do..: as a..smythe to awey with greatter hammer labour, than a yonger man nat therto accustomed.
1564 A. Golding tr. Justinus Hist. Trogus Pompeius xxiii. 103v They wer kept..without garmentes to put on theyr backes, or bed to lie vpon, to thentent yt from their tender yeres they might enure themselues..to away with hardnesse and sparinge.
1668 J. Wilson tr. Erasmus Moriae Encomium 22 That the life of man, might not be altogether disconsolate, and hard to away with.
?1795 T. G. Hancock Distracted Complaints of Mr. Fletcher 11 But, who do you think is to away with ‘Crazy-Tales, Chevy-Chace’?
1890 J. D. Robertson Gloss. Words County of Gloucester My 'eads bin that middlin, I don't know 'ow to away with un.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2019).
awayadv.adj.n.
/əˈweɪ/, U.S. /əˈweɪ/, Scottish English /əˈwe/, Irish English /əˈweː/α. Old English an weg (rare), Old English anweg (rare), Old English on weg, Old English onweg, Old English on wege (rare), Old English onwege (rare), early Middle English onweȝ, Middle English on wai, Middle English on-wai, Middle English on way, Middle English on weie, Middle English o wai, Middle English o-wai, Middle English owai, Middle English o way, Middle English o-way, Middle English oway, Middle English o wey, Middle English owey, Middle English owy; English regional (Lancashire) 1700s–1800s owey.
β. Old English aueg (Northumbrian), Old English awæg, Old English awæig, Old English aweg, Old English awęg, Old English awege (rare), Old English aweig, Old English awoeg (Northumbrian), late Old English æweg, early Middle English awaþ (transmission error), early Middle English awæȝ, early Middle English awæi, early Middle English aweȝ, early Middle English aweȝȝ ( Ormulum), early Middle English aweȝȝe ( Ormulum), early Middle English aweig, early Middle English awi, Middle English a vay, Middle English avay, Middle English a vey, Middle English a-vey, Middle English avey, Middle English a-wai, Middle English a-waie, Middle English a-way, Middle English a-waye, Middle English awe, Middle English a wei, Middle English a-wei, Middle English a weie, Middle English a-weie, Middle English aweiȝ, Middle English a weiȝe, Middle English a-wey, Middle English a-weye, Middle English aweyȝe, Middle English awhey, Middle English awy, Middle English ewai (northern), Middle English–1500s a wai, Middle English–1500s awai, Middle English–1500s awei, Middle English–1500s aweie, Middle English–1500s a wey, Middle English–1500s a weye, Middle English–1500s aweye, Middle English–1600s awaie, Middle English–1600s a way, Middle English–1600s a waye, Middle English–1600s awaye, Middle English–1600s awey, Middle English– away, late Middle English awoy (perhaps transmission error), late Middle English ewey (East Anglian), 1500s a waie, 1600s awaij, 1800s awaay (English regional (northern and midlands)); Scottish pre-1700 auay, pre-1700 a-va, pre-1700 avay, pre-1700 avaye, pre-1700 avey, pre-1700 awaȝ, pre-1700 awai, pre-1700 awaie, pre-1700 awey, pre-1700 awy, pre-1700 1700s– awa Brit. /əˈwɑː/, U.S. /əˈweɪ/, Scottish English /əˈwa/, Irish English /əˈwaː/, pre-1700 1700s– away, 1700s– awa', 1900s uwaw, 1900s– awaa, 1900s– awo; also Irish English 1800s awye (Wexford), 1900s awa' (northern), 1900s– awa (northern).
A. adv.
I. Senses relating to motion.
1.
a. Expressing motion or direction from a place: to a distance, to some other place; so as to be absent. Sometimes (without reference to a particular place): on one's way; onward, on, along (chiefly in come away: see to come away 1a at come v. Phrasal verbs 1).
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > direction > [adverb] > away from some thing or place
awayeOE
outeOE
frowardOE
offOE
yondwardc1275
yonwarda1387
waywardsc1390
fromwarda1547
offward1582
fromwardsa1661
orf1845
the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > forward movement > [adverb]
awayeOE
forneOE
forthc1000
forthwardc1175
furtherlyc1175
toforec1330
forea1400
forwarda1400
furtherwarda1400
avauntc1400
forwardsc1400
onwardc1425
toward1426
forouth1487
up to ——1516
forth on1529
onwards1540
aheada1615
forrita1796
advancingly1820
onwardly1831
forwardly1876
the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > going away > [adverb]
awayeOE
awaywardc1225
awaywardsc1275
froa1400
frowardc1426
froma1450
society > travel > aspects of travel > departure, leaving, or going away > [adverb]
awayeOE
forthc1000
upstick1904
eOE Anglo-Saxon Chron. (Parker) anno 914 Hira feawa onweg comon buton þa ane þe þær ut ætswummon.
OE Beowulf (2008) 2096 He on weg losade, lytle hwile lifwynna bre[a]c.
OE Ælfric Homily (Cambr. Ii.4.6) in J. C. Pope Homilies of Ælfric (1967) I. 361 Hu he þone hæþenan god, þe nane godcundnysse næfde, adræfde mid his tocyme of his anlicnysse aweg.
OE Ælfric Let. to Sigeweard (De Veteri et Novo Test.) (Laud) 67 Se apostol..alædde [hine] aweg wepende to circean, & for hine gebæd mid broðorlicre lufe.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 5012 Bruttes..hehten heom faren awæi & fleon of heore londe.
c1330 Sir Orfeo (Auch.) (1966) l. 329 Þe oþer leuedis..maked hir oway to ride.
c1450 (c1380) G. Chaucer House of Fame (Fairf. 16) (1878) l. 169 And bare hym on hys bakke avay [c1475 Bodl. 638 a way, 1483 Caxton awey].
1526 Bible (Tyndale) John xvi. f. cxlv It is expedient for you that I goo a waye.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Comedy of Errors (1623) i. ii. 16 Get thee away . View more context for this quotation
1700 J. Dryden Char. Good Parson in Fables 534 And hungry sent the wily Fox away.
1711 R. Steele Spectator No. 136. ⁋2 My Imagination runs away with me.
1782 W. Cowper John Gilpin xxv Away went Gilpin, neck or nought; Away went hat and wig.
1854 W. M. Thackeray Newcomes I. xxiv. 225 They sail away each on his course.
2003 M. McDonagh Pillowman ii. i. 45 She sent him away, and he went away crying.
b. In predicative use, chiefly as to be away.
(a) Expressing motion so as to become distant from a place; that is departing or setting off, esp. at speed or in haste.See also to be well away at well adv. and n.4 Phrases 5.
ΚΠ
1784 in G. Caw Poet. Museum 152 Sae now they're away for Liddisdale, E'en as fast as they cou'd them hie.
1873 W. Black Princess of Thule xii. 193 The stag..was away like lightning down the bed of the stream.
1969 A. Cordell Song of Earth (1972) xviii. 159 I..gave the heels to the big grey mare, and we were away.
2005 C. Cleave Incendiary 159 Follow me. Petra was away. She was dashing between the racks grabbing clothes off the rails and throwing them over her arms.
(b) colloquial and regional (chiefly Scottish and Irish English). Chiefly with the present tense of be. Just going away, about to leave, leaving, e.g. I'm away home now.
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > relative time > immediacy > [adverb]
soonc825
ratheeOE
rathelyeOE
rekeneOE
rekenlyOE
thereright971
anonOE
forth ona1000
coflyc1000
ferlyc1000
radlyOE
swiftlyc1000
unyoreOE
yareOE
at the forme (also first) wordOE
nowOE
shortlya1050
rightOE
here-rightlOE
right anonlOE
anonc1175
forthrightc1175
forthwithalc1175
skeetc1175
swithc1175
with and withc1175
anon-rightc1225
anon-rights?c1225
belivec1225
lightly?c1225
quickly?c1225
tidelyc1225
fastlyc1275
hastilyc1275
i-radlichec1275
as soon asc1290
aright1297
bedenea1300
in little wevea1300
withoute(n dwella1300
alrightc1300
as fast (as)c1300
at firstc1300
in placec1300
in the placec1300
mididonec1300
outrightc1300
prestc1300
streck13..
titec1300
without delayc1300
that stounds1303
rada1325
readya1325
apacec1325
albedenec1330
as (also also) titec1330
as blivec1330
as line rightc1330
as straight as linec1330
in anec1330
in presentc1330
newlyc1330
suddenlyc1330
titelyc1330
yernec1330
as soon1340
prestly1340
streckly1340
swithly?1370
evenlya1375
redelya1375
redlya1375
rifelya1375
yeplya1375
at one blastc1380
fresha1382
ripelyc1384
presentc1385
presently1385
without arrestc1385
readilyc1390
in the twinkling of a looka1393
derflya1400
forwhya1400
skeetlya1400
straighta1400
swifta1400
maintenantc1400
out of handc1400
wightc1400
at a startc1405
immediately1420
incontinent1425
there and then1428
onenec1429
forwithc1430
downright?a1439
agatec1440
at a tricec1440
right forth1440
withouten wonec1440
whipc1460
forthwith1461
undelayed1470
incessantly1472
at a momentc1475
right nowc1475
synec1475
incontinently1484
promptly1490
in the nonce?a1500
uncontinent1506
on (upon, in) the instant1509
in short1513
at a clap1519
by and by1526
straightway1526
at a twitch1528
at the first chop1528
maintenantly1528
on a tricea1529
with a tricec1530
at once1531
belively1532
straightwaysa1533
short days1533
undelayedly1534
fro hand1535
indelayedly1535
straight forth1536
betimesc1540
livelyc1540
upononc1540
suddenly1544
at one (or a) dash?1550
at (the) first dash?1550
instantly1552
forth of hand1564
upon the nines1568
on the nail1569
at (also in, with) a thoughtc1572
indilately1572
summarily1578
at one (a) chop1581
amain1587
straightwise1588
extempore1593
presto1598
upon the place1600
directly1604
instant1604
just now1606
with a siserary1607
promiscuously1609
at (in) one (an) instant1611
on (also upon) the momenta1616
at (formerly also on or upon) sight1617
hand to fist1634
fastisha1650
nextly1657
to rights1663
straightaway1663
slap1672
at first bolt1676
point-blank1679
in point1680
offhand1686
instanter1688
sonica1688
flush1701
like a thought1720
in a crack1725
momentary1725
bumbye1727
clacka1734
plumba1734
right away1734
momentarily1739
momentaneously1753
in a snap1768
right off1771
straight an end1778
abruptedly1784
in a whistle1784
slap-bang1785
bang?1795
right off the reel1798
in a whiff1800
in a flash1801
like a shot1809
momently1812
in a brace or couple of shakes1816
in a gird1825
(all) in a rush1829
in (also at, on) short (also quick) order1830
straightly1830
toot sweetc1830
in two twos1838
rectly1843
quick-stick1844
short metre1848
right1849
at the drop of a (occasionally the) hat1854
off the hooks1860
quicksticks1860
straight off1873
bang off1886
away1887
in quick sticks (also in a quick stick)1890
ek dum1895
tout de suite1895
bung1899
one time1899
prompt1910
yesterday1911
in two ups1934
presto changeo1946
now-now1966
presto change1987
1887 R. L. Stevenson in Leisure Hour Jan. 26 I'm weariet, an' here I'm awa to my bed.
1917 R. Graves Fairies & Fusiliers 24 I'm away to the rain-blown hill.
1985 J. Sullivan Only Fools & Horses (1999) I. 4th Ser. Episode 2. 213 I'm away now, boys. So I'll see you later... I'm off now, Del alright son.
2000 D. Dillon Return of Busby Babes 113 That's us away, she goes and kisses the good bit of his cheek.
2011 Belfast Tel. (Nexis) 8 Oct. (Final ed.) 2 I've been up for hours. I'm away home for a sleep.
2.
a. Expressing separation from attachment, contact, or inclusion: off, aside.Frequent in phrasal verbs, as to take away at take v. Phrasal verbs 1, to break away 1 at break v. Phrasal verbs, to cut away 1 at cut v. Phrasal verbs.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > direction > [adverb] > away from some thing or place > away from contact or inclusion
awayeOE
adownlOE
eOE Bald's Leechbk. (Royal) (1865) i. xxxix. 102 Gif hit wille wyrsman smire mid æges geolcan.., þweah þonne aweg & smire eft mid þære sealfe.
OE tr. Pseudo-Apuleius Herbarium (Vitell.) (1984) civ. 150 Do sona þone læcedom aweg [?a1200 Harl. 6258B aweȝ], þy læs þæs in[noðes d]æl þæ[ræ]fter [filige].
a1250 Ureisun ure Louerde (Lamb.) in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 189 Waschen a-wai alle folkes fulþe.
a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1965) Job ii. 8 Job..with a sherd scrapide awei þe quyture sittinge in þe dunge hil.
1481 W. Caxton tr. Hist. Reynard Fox (1970) 40 Scrape and dygge a way a lytyl the mosse.
1574 St. Avstens Manuell in Certaine Prayers S. Augustines Medit. sig. oij To laye away the burden of fleshly desires.
1639 T. de Gray Compl. Horseman ii. xviii. 314 Clip away the long shag haire from about the pasternes.
a1711 T. Ken Wks. (1721) I. 361 His mournful Tears he clear'd away.
1873 H. W. Longfellow Elizabeth 29 in Aftermath 51 She folded her work, and laid it away.
2007 Independent 12 Feb. (Extra section) 11/1 The heavy downpour had washed away the surrounding soil to reveal the fossils.
b. Into an appropriate place for storage or safekeeping.Frequently in phrasal verbs, as to hide away at hide v.1 1a, to lock away at lock v.1 Phrasal verbs 1.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > supply > storage > [adverb]
upc1290
away1567
1567 J. Maplet Greene Forest iii. f. 98v She will rather hide away hir dung, than that man should haue profit thereby.
1607 E. Topsell Hist. Foure-footed Beastes 650 That which swimmeth aboue in the manner of fat, they scum it off with their handes, and put it away in a vessell of Tinne.
1857 O. W. Wight Quinland I. i. i. 23 He found a large silver cup, which had been carefully packed away in cotton-wool.
1917 T. S. Eliot Let. 23 Mar. (1988) I. 171 My fifty pounds which I have managed to tuck away in a deposit account.
2011 A. Konstam & D. Rickman Pirate 34 The arms chest was kept safely locked away to prevent mutinies.
3. Expressing decay, elimination, extinction, or termination (in most cases gradual): from its normal state or condition; from existence, to death; (esp. with reference to a period of time) to an end; to nothing. Often with verbs in figurative uses.With verbs describing physical processes, as to boil away, to fade away, to pine away, to waste away; with verbs describing behaviour, indicating the loss or destruction of something as a result of that behaviour, as to idle away, to loiter away, to while away; with verbs describing rational activity, indicating the elimination of something from consideration, as to analyse away, to explain away.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > creation > destruction > [adverb] > away
awayOE
the world > relative properties > order > order, sequence, or succession > end or conclusion > [adverb] > to the end
offeOE
awayOE
outc1175
OE Ælfric Lives of Saints (Julius) (1900) II. 166 Þes middaneard flihð aweg swyðe, and ure dagas gewitað, swa swa wegfærende menn.
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 1743 To bærnenn all þatt ifell iss. Aweȝȝ inn hise þeowwess.
?a1200 (?OE) Peri Didaxeon (1896) 47 Þann clansaþ þa scealfe þane innoþ and þa werinysse aweȝ ȝedeð and þann maȝan ȝewyrmþ.
c1225 (?c1200) St. Katherine (Bodl.) (1981) l. 276 Þe king bigon to wreððen þet te dei eode awei ant heo ne duden nawiht.
a1387 J. Trevisa tr. R. Higden Polychron. (St. John's Cambr.) (1869) II. 371 (MED) Þe þridde age is elde and boweþ as a dragoun, and wasteþ alle away.
c1450 (c1380) G. Chaucer House of Fame (Fairf. 16) (1878) l. 1149 They were molte awey with hete.
1526 Bible (Tyndale) Luke ix. f. lxxxixv The daye began to weare awaye.
1566 T. Becon New Postil i. f. 27 Other deuoure, riot awaie consume prodigallie al things by costly apparell, & gorgeous building.
1611 Bible (King James) Job xxxiii. 21 His flesh is consumed away . View more context for this quotation
1651 J. French Art Distillation ii. 60 Let that..be vapoured away to the thicknesse of honey.
1741 S. Richardson Pamela III. xv. 75 To split Hairs, and to distinguish away their Christian Duties.
1767 J. Wesley Jrnl. 27 July (1827) III. 284 Having a severe cold, I was in hopes of riding it away.
1816 W. Scott Old Mortality viii, in Tales of my Landlord 1st Ser. IV. 152 Their zeal..died gradually away.
1864 H. W. Longfellow Falcon Federigo 114 The petted boy grew ill, and day by day Pined with mysterious malady away.
2010 Independent (Nexis) 17 July 56 Returns on savings fall, while inflation eats away the value of their money.
4.
a. Expressing partial revolution or rotation: so as to face in another direction (e.g. to look away); to be directed elsewhere (e.g. to face away); aside. Frequently in figurative contexts implying cessation of attention or engagement.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > [adverb] > in the other direction
awayOE
awaysa1500
OE Ælfric Catholic Homilies: 2nd Ser. (Cambr. Gg.3.28) xxxiv. 294 Se woda ða awende aweg his ceaflas fram ðære halgan handa, swilce fram hatum isene.
a1225 (?OE) MS Lamb. in R. Morris Old Eng. Homilies (1868) 1st Ser. 53 Hi beoð iturnd awey from heom.
?c1400 (c1380) G. Chaucer tr. Boethius De Consol. Philos. (BL Add. 10340) (1868) v. pr. ii. l. 4413 Þei han cast aweye hir eyen fro þe lyȝt..to lowe þinges and dirke.
c1405 (c1385) G. Chaucer Knight's Tale (Hengwrt) (2003) l. 1460 Fro me turn awey hir hertes so That al hir hote loue..Be queynt and turned in another place.
c1475 (?c1400) Apol. Lollard Doctr. (1842) 68 Turniþ awey ȝour facis fro al ȝour folthis.
1578 J. Rolland Seuin Seages 35 He wryit his face away and his visage.
1712 R. Steele Spectator No. 514. ⁋3 I turned away from this despicable troop with disdain.
1879 J. N. Lockyer Elem. Lessons Astron. (new ed.) iii. xii. 72 The axis of rotation is inclined away from the Sun.
1932 W. B. Pitkin Life begins at Forty ii. 13 Look away from a score or more of dazzling exceptions to the national trend, and what do we see?
2000 L. Levi Journey as Wire Bend 2 Ros turned away from the window.
b. Baseball. Of (the direction of) a pitch or pitched ball: towards the side of the home plate furthest from the batting player.
ΚΠ
1909 Amer. Mag. June 110/2 As Dahlen had heard him ordered to keep the ball away, he would expect a fast ball outside.
1968 N.Y. Times 22 Sept. v. 6/4 It starts high, then about 15 feet from the plate starts to break down and away.
1977 R. Angell Five Seasons xi. 257 He has a tendency to go up the middle and I'll try to keep it a bit away.
1992 N.Y. Times 9 July b13/1 I wasn't looking for anything in particular... He came in with a fastball away and I drove it up the middle.
2017 Chico Enterprise-Record (Calif.) (Nexis) 5 June cc4 He kept the ball down. He kept the ball away. He changed speeds.
5. Expressing parting with something, deprivation, or loss: from or out of one's possession (e.g. to give away).
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > relinquishing > [adverb] > so as to part with
awayOE
the world > space > place > removal or displacement > [adverb] > removed
upc897
outeOE
awayc1661
OE tr. Alexander's Let. to Aristotle (1995) §10. 230 For þon hie wendon & ondredon gif hie hit [sc. treasure] behindon forleton þæt hiora fynd hit þonne deagollice genomon & onweg aleddon.
lOE Laws of Æðelred II (Rochester) iii. ix. §1. 230 Gif he þa hyde ær þam aweg sylle, gilde xx oran.
?a1200 (?OE) Peri Didaxeon (1896) 25 Wring þanne þurh claþ and wurp aweȝ þa mintan.
c1225 (?c1200) St. Margaret (Bodl.) (1934) 12 Hwar-to luste þe warpen al awei þine hwile?
?a1300 Iacob & Iosep (Bodl.) (1916) l. 515 He caste awei his crucche, his mantel he feng.
a1398 J. Trevisa tr. Bartholomaeus Anglicus De Proprietatibus Rerum (BL Add. 27944) (1975) II. xvii. lxxvii. 969 Þe vertu þerof is fuyry and hoot... And is yfeyned..wiþ benes yscheled and ybroke and þe scheles yþrowe aweye.
a1500 ( J. Yonge tr. Secreta Secret. (Rawl.) (1898) 218 (MED) Dronknesse..puttyth away al the remembrance of thynges wych weryn afor-honde vndyrstonde.
1611 Bible (King James) Gen. xxvii. 36 Hee tooke away my birthright. View more context for this quotation
1653 I. Walton Compl. Angler 56 It shall be given away to some poor body. View more context for this quotation
c1661 Argyle's Last Will in Harl. Misc. (1746) VIII. 27/1 What was got by Oppression, will be booned away by the King's Liberality.
1711 R. Steele Spectator No. 138. ⁋3 This odd turn of Head which can play away its Words.
1873 H. W. Longfellow Emma & Eginhard 179 This passing traveller, who hath stolen away The brightest jewel of my crown to-day.
2010 New Yorker 3 May 46/2 The judge had taken the child away from the mother and given her to the father.
6. Expressing continuous persistent action: onward in time, continuously, constantly; frequently with verbs in the imperative giving permission to begin or continue an activity. In earliest use implying completion: †fully, altogether, thoroughly (obsolete).See also to fire away 1 at fire v.1 Phrasal verbs, to say away at say v.1 and int. Phrasal verbs.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > continuing > [adverb] > in a continuous manner or without stopping
fastlyOE
anonOE
everOE
everylikec1225
continuallyc1305
atreet1340
unceasinglyc1340
perpetuallyc1385
incessably1398
desselya1400
ithandlya1400
dreichlyc1400
restlessc1400
contunely1447
all alongc1450
dessantlyc1460
incessantly1481
still opece1488
uncessantlya1500
continuinglya1513
in ane1513
away1526
incessant1558
restlessly1567
square1570
stintless1598
ceaselessly?1606
residently1609
unrestingly1621
indesinently1651
jugially1654
unintermissively1656
constantly1682
hand to fist1706
forever1753
unintermittingly1784
round the clock1816
continuously1826
unpausingly1831
sustainedly1842
pauselessly1845
remorselessly1845
around the clock1872
play-by-play1889
ball-by-ball1906
non-stop1920
solidly1937
1526 Bible (Tyndale) John xvi. f. cxlv I have yet many thynges to saye vnto you: but ye cannot beare them awaye nowe.
1550 J. Heywood Hundred Epigrammes iv. sig. Aiiiiv I with ale, and ale with me wag awaie.
1676 T. Shadwell Virtuoso ii. 20 Come..pull away.
1737 M. Green Spleen 37 While Pan melodious pipes away.
1821 W. Scott Kenilworth III. viii. 140 Scream away if you like it.
1855 W. M. Thackeray Rose & Ring xiv. 89 He sat down and worked away, very, very hard.
1957 L. de Wohl Glorious Folly (1962) i. i. 8 And the anteroom here would be full of his retinue, jabbering away like six dozen monkeys.
2014 @CoachRickW 16 Jan. in twitter.com (O.E.D. Archive) ‘Needs explaining’ I agree,..go ahead..explain away.
II. Senses relating to position.
7. In predicative use, as to be away. Expressing the condition resulting from deprivation, loss, or extinction: gone (from existence); (formerly) vanished, destroyed, consumed; (now only) dead; in a faint. Now Scottish, Irish English (northern), and Manx English.
ΘΚΠ
the world > life > death > dead person or the dead > [adverb]
awayOE
asleep1297
with one's heels foremost (also forward)1637
irresuscitably1834
the world > physical sensation > sight and vision > invisibility > [adverb] > vanishingly > vanished
awayOE
gone with the wind1896
OE tr. Medicina de Quadrupedibus (Vitell.) x. 264 Nim wulle & wæt mid biccean hlonde, wrið on þa weartan & on þa wearras; hraþe hi beoð awege.
a1325 (c1250) Gen. & Exod. (1968) l. 616 Noe..sag erðe drie & te water awai.
c1380 Sir Ferumbras (1879) l. 2504 Our bred, our wyn ys al away.
a1439 J. Lydgate Fall of Princes (Bodl. 263) iv. l. 623 A blase of fyr, now briht & now away.
c1475 (a1400) Sir Amadace (Taylor) in J. Robson Three Early Eng. Metrical Romances (1842) 32 (MED) On quat maner spendutte he his gud, That thusgate is away?
1535 Bible (Coverdale) Jer. xxxi. 15 Rachel mournynge for hir children, and wolde not be comforted, because they were awaye.
a1614 J. Melville Autobiogr. & Diary (1842) 36 He marked him, when all thought he was away, to lift upe his hands that war bund befor him.
1787 R. Burns Poems (new ed.) 150 Your mortal Fae is now awa', Tam Samson's dead!
1818 Edinb. Mag. & Literary Misc. Dec. 503/2 My dochter was lang awa [= in a swoon], but whan she cam again, she tauld us, etc.
1990 B. Whyte Red Rowans & Wild Honey (1991) 40 Aye, Maggie, it's been a lang time, and Sandy's awa.
8. In predicative use, chiefly as to be away.
a. Expressing the state or condition resulting from departure or displacement: gone (from a place); absent (esp. from home, school, or place of work).In quot. OE with worth v.1 and reflexive pronoun in the dative.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > absence > [adverb] > of the state resulting from removal
awayOE
OE Ælfric Old Test. Summary: Maccabees (Julius) in W. W. Skeat Ælfric's Lives of Saints (1900) II. 80 Mathathias..towearp þæt deofolgild, and wearð him awege.
c1175 Ormulum (Burchfield transcript) l. 6955 Forrþi wass swiþe wel ðatt iosæp wass aweȝȝe.
c1330 (?a1300) Sir Tristrem (1886) l. 2582 Þi wiif is now oway.
a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 2095 Þei..turned aȝein..& told he was a-weie.
a1400 (a1325) Cursor Mundi (Trin. Cambr.) l. 9702 What is wisdome be pees awaye?
c1450 (a1425) Metrical Paraphr. Old Test. (Selden) l. 2657 He was a way when þei lest wend.
1546 J. Heywood Dialogue Prouerbes Eng. Tongue ii. v. sig. Givv Three maie keepe a counsell, if two be awaie.
1647 A. Cowley Spring in Mistress ii How could it be so fair and you away?
1838 E. Bulwer-Lytton Alice I. ii. iii. 22 I must give you a holiday task to learn while I am away.
1915 V. Bell Lett. (1993) 177 I'm afraid that being away will make it almost if not quite impossible for me to do the other dresses.
2001 Cosmopolitan Dec. 172/2 Your sis asks you to take care of her dog while she's away.
b. colloquial (originally Australian). In prison. Cf. to put away 2f at put v. Phrasal verbs 1, to go away 5b at go v. Phrasal verbs 1.
ΚΠ
1894 A. B. Paterson in Bulletin (Sydney) 15 Dec. 1 I thought a lawyer ought to know—I don't know what to say, You'll have to do without him, boss, for Peter is—away.
1925 S. Scott Human Side Crook Life 299 The world will begin to think that I must have been ‘away’.
2003 New Yorker 18 Aug. 117/1 In northeast Oklahoma City, the question ‘Where he away at’? is widely understood to mean, In what prison is he serving time?
c. figurative. colloquial (chiefly Irish English and Scottish). Originally: under the influence of the fairies. Subsequently: mad, out of one's wits, in a world of one's own; in a drunken or drug-induced state. See also Phrases 3.
ΚΠ
1899 W. B. Yeats Wind among Reeds 67 Those that are at times ‘away’, as it is called, know all things, but are afraid to speak.
1907 J. M. Synge Aran Islands i. 46 He has seen two women who were ‘away’ with them [sc. the fairies], one a young married woman, the other a girl.
1938 S. MacManus Rocky Road to Dublin viii. 70 Roisin, looking at him with pain in her eyes, said to her husband, ‘He's away. He must have met the mist and been taken in it.’
1959 J. Berryman 77 Dream Songs i. 3 It was the thought that they thought they could do it made Henry wicked and away. But he should have come out and talked.
1974 M. C. Gerald Pharmacol. xi. 206 The user [sc. of barbiturates] experiences a euphoric feeling, reported as being ‘high’, ‘calm’, or ‘away’.
1988 M. Munro Patter: Another Blast 3 The guy's no right in the heid, pal, he's away.
9.
a. With reference to distance in space or time.
(a) Expressing position resulting from remoteness in space: in another place; at a distance; at a (specified) distance, off. Frequently preceded by far.Since the mid 19th century, often with immediately preceding statement of distance, as twenty miles away. See also miles away at mile n.1 Phrases 1c.Cf. to keep away at keep v. Phrasal verbs 1, to stay away at stay v.1 4e.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > distance > distance or farness > [adverb]
wideOE
awaya1375
upon farc1380
offc1400
aferroma1425
at length?1611
in distans1645
a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 2781 Fer away fro þe see.
a1413 (c1385) G. Chaucer Troilus & Criseyde (Pierpont Morgan) (1881) ii. l. 216 Euery wight..gan fer a-wey to stonde.
1596 W. Warner Albions Eng. (rev. ed.) xi. lxiii. 275 Saint Nicholas Bay..fifteene hundreth Miles from Mosco is away.
1712 Spectator No. 502. ⁋5 I shall not be able to stay away.
1843 C. H. Bateman in Sacred Melodies Children xix There is a happy land Far, far away.
1850 J. R. Simms Trappers N.Y. 235 Foster was eight feet from a small fire place; witness about ten feet away, packing.
1867 G. MacDonald Ann. Quiet Neighbourhood I. i. 24 Away in the distance..glittered a weathercock.
1881 R. D. Blackmore Christowell (1882) xxxix His home was some miles away.
1921 Ladies' Home Jrnl. Mar. 39/4 The voices of the others, preparing the lunch, sounded a long way away.
2009 N. Fiedler Hopeful Skeptic iii. 47 A lot of people live further away from their jobs than they used to.
(b) Originally U.S. Expressing remoteness in time: (after a specified period) in the future; yet. Always with immediately preceding statement of time; often used to indicate distance (implying the time taken by driving, flying, sailing, etc., that far).
ΚΠ
1910 A. Kortrecht Dixie Rose 225 The girl..was to return to Miss Randall's school until her eighteenth birthday, two whole years away.
1944 Yank 11 June 8/1 The scuttlebutt reported that the nearest enemy ships were two days away.
1974 Times 6 Sept. 1/4 He hinted heavily several times that polling day was only a matter of weeks away.
2016 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 7 Feb. (Educ. Life section) 12/1 Ferguson is two hours away.
b. Originally and chiefly U.S. Used as an intensifier, chiefly modifying adverbs of distance or time, as away back, away behind, away down, away up, emphasizing the extent, remoteness, etc., involved. Cf. way adv. 2b.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > distance > distance or farness > [adverb] > at or to a distance
ferrenc888
farc900
longOE
afarc1300
yond13..
on length1340
alonga1382
adreigha1393
on dreicha1400
afar offc1400
far-aboutc1450
alengtha1500
distantlya1500
remote1589
remotely1609
yferrea1643
out of his (her, its, etc.) way1650
adistance1807
away1818
way1833
way1833
way off1836
way out1840
1818 J. Palmer Jrnl. Trav. U.S. ix. 130 Perhaps away up in Canada.
1825 J. Neal Brother Jonathan III. 145 A..he-yankee, from ‘away down east’.
1882 A. E. Sweet & J. A. Knox Sketches from Texas Siftings 45 Lawler..shot a deer, away back in 1840, on the spot where the capitol now stands.
1903 Sun (N.Y.) 26 Nov. 5 Turkeys are away up in price.
1906 N.Y. Evening Post 28 Apr. Manufacturers of all good cars are away behind in their deliveries.
1935 Punch 25 Sept. 342/3 I can remember your father away back in eighty-five, long before you were born.
1958 Times Rev. Industry Aug. 85/1 Large towns like Liverpool..are away down in the list [of bankruptcies].
2001 www.rugbyheaven.com.au 14 Dec. (O.E.D. Archive) Auckland started this habit away back in the mid-80s.
c. Baseball. Out; dismissed as batter.
ΚΠ
1881 N.Y. Herald 15 July 6/4 The Metropolitans scoring two runs in the first inning, after putting their opponents away in one, two, three order.
1992 Buffalo (N.Y.) News 23 Aug. b4/3 Cerutti singled with one out in the fourth and scored as Garcia tripled to straightaway center with two away.
2002 J. Klima Pitched Battle 19 Matthewson didn't blunder. He threw him out. One away.
d. With reference to a sports fixture: at the opponents' ground. Cf. sense B. 1a.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > sport > match or competition > [adverb] > home or away
home-and-home1751
at home1833
home and away1885
away1890
on (also upon) the road1968
1890 Guy's Hosp. Gaz. 19 Apr. 96/1 Owing to the numerous matches which have been played away,..the finances of the club are not in as good a condition as they might be.
1907 Daily Chron. 16 Dec. 1/7 Chelsea won their first victory ‘away’.
2000 Rugby World June 48/2 If they are to achieve a first Test win away to a southern hemisphere superpower since 1994, they will have to keep van der Westhuizen in check.
III. In elliptical uses, with main verb implied.
10.
a. Used after auxiliary verbs, as may, shall, will, etc. To go away, get away, depart. Now chiefly with must. archaic.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > going away > go away [verb (intransitive)]
wendeOE
i-wite971
ashakec975
shakeOE
to go awayOE
witea1000
afareOE
agoOE
atwendOE
awayOE
to wend awayOE
awendOE
gangOE
rimeOE
flitc1175
to fare forthc1200
depart?c1225
part?c1225
partc1230
to-partc1275
biwitec1300
atwitea1325
withdrawa1325
to draw awayc1330
passc1330
to turn one's (also the) backc1330
lenda1350
begonec1370
remuea1375
voidc1374
removec1380
to long awaya1382
twinc1386
to pass one's wayc1390
trussc1390
waive1390
to pass out ofa1398
avoida1400
to pass awaya1400
to turn awaya1400
slakec1400
wagc1400
returnc1405
to be gonea1425
muck1429
packc1450
recede1450
roomc1450
to show (a person) the feetc1450
to come offc1475
to take one's licence1475
issue1484
devoidc1485
rebatea1500
walka1500
to go adieua1522
pikea1529
to go one's ways1530
retire?1543
avaunt1549
to make out1558
trudge1562
vade?1570
fly1581
leave1593
wag1594
to get off1595
to go off1600
to put off1600
shog1600
troop1600
to forsake patch1602
exit1607
hence1614
to give offa1616
to take off1657
to move off1692
to cut (also slip) the painter1699
sheera1704
to go about one's business1749
mizzle1772
to move out1792
transit1797–1803
stump it1803
to run away1809
quit1811
to clear off1816
to clear out1816
nash1819
fuff1822
to make (take) tracks (for)1824
mosey1829
slope1830
to tail out1830
to walk one's chalks1835
to take away1838
shove1844
trot1847
fade1848
evacuate1849
shag1851
to get up and get1854
to pull out1855
to cut (the) cable(s)1859
to light out1859
to pick up1872
to sling one's Daniel or hook1873
to sling (also take) one's hook1874
smoke1893
screw1896
shoot1897
voetsak1897
to tootle off1902
to ship out1908
to take a (run-out, walk-out, etc.) powder1909
to push off1918
to bugger off1922
biff1923
to fuck off1929
to hit, split or take the breeze1931
to jack off1931
to piss offa1935
to do a mick1937
to take a walk1937
to head off1941
to take a hike1944
moulder1945
to chuff off1947
to get lost1947
to shoot through1947
skidoo1949
to sod off1950
peel1951
bug1952
split1954
poop1961
mugger1962
frig1965
society > travel > aspects of travel > departure, leaving, or going away > depart, leave, or go away [verb (intransitive)]
to come awayeOE
wendeOE
i-wite971
ashakec975
shakeOE
to go awayOE
witea1000
afareOE
agoOE
awayOE
dealc1000
goOE
awendOE
rimeOE
to go one's wayOE
flitc1175
depart?c1225
partc1230
to-partc1275
atwitea1325
withdrawa1325
to turn one's (also the) backc1330
lenda1350
begonec1370
remuea1375
removec1380
to long awaya1382
twinc1386
to pass one's wayc1390
trussc1390
to turn awaya1400
returnc1405
to be gonea1425
recede1450
roomc1450
to come offc1475
to take one's licence1475
issue1484
walka1500
to go adieua1522
pikea1529
avaunt1549
trudge1562
vade?1570
discoast1571
leave1593
wag1594
to go off1600
troop1600
hence1614
to set on one's foota1616
to pull up one's stumps1647
quit1811
to clear out1816
slope1830
to walk one's chalks1835
shove1844
to roll out1850
to pull out1855
to light out1859
to take a run-out powder1909
to push off (also along)1923
OE Lacnunga (2001) I. ix. 6 Gif poc sy on eagan: nim mærc, sapan & hinde meolc.., do on ða eagan; mid Godes fultume he sceal aweg.
OE Seven Sleepers (Julius) (1994) 35 Hi ealle ætgædere oncwædon and anre stemne clypedon, þæt hi mid ealle aweg ðanon woldon.
a1300 in C. Brown Eng. Lyrics 13th Cent. (1932) 19 Þat on is ich sal awe [a1300 Arun. awei], þat oþer is ich ne wot wilk day.
c1440 Liber de Diversis Med. 35 (MED) Plaster it ther-to, & it [sc. the pain] sall awaye.
1487 (a1380) J. Barbour Bruce (St. John's Cambr.) xviii. 367 Othirwayis mycht thai nocht avay [1489 Adv. away].
1595 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 3 v. i. 113 I will awaie to Barnet presently.
1623 J. Bingham tr. Xenophon Hist. 28 We must..away euery man to his lodging.
1872 W. F. Butler Great Lone Land iii. 25 Meantime we must away.
1991 M. S. Power Come the Executioner (1992) iii. 22 And now I must away. Margaret is entertaining, and I have to be there. God knows why.
b. As an imperative.
(a) Demanding the removal or departure of someone or something: take (something) away; go away. Now chiefly Scottish and Irish English (northern).
ΚΠ
a1275 St. Margaret (Trin. Cambr.) l. 141 in A. S. M. Clark Seint Maregrete & Body & Soul (Ph.D. diss., Univ. of Michigan) (1972) 45 Awei, þe euele consilers.
a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) vii. l. 5118 Awey the tirannie!
a1529 J. Skelton Magnyfycence (?1530) sig. Diiiv Nowe then goo we hens, away the mare.
1611 Bible (King James) Exod. xix. 24 Away, get thee downe. View more context for this quotation
1762 W. Falconer Shipwreck ii. 36 Away there! low'r the mizen-yard on deck.
1926 G. Blake Young Malcolm 39 Away and play yourself.
2000 A. Thirkell tr. H. Ibsen Pillars of Society (SCOTS) ii. Awa and sit ootside, someone'll maybe come. Dae ye want folk to see you've been greeting?
(b) figurative. Chiefly Scottish. Expressing shock, incredulity, contempt, or rebuff. Also in away on (Irish English (northern)). Cf. get away with you at get v. Phrasal verbs 1.
ΚΠ
1772 Triumph of Benevolence I. xv. 173 ‘Hoot awa’, replied the Captain.
1816 W. Scott Antiquary I. x. 229 ‘Hout awa', ye auld gowk,’ said Jenny Rintherout.
1926 G. Blake Young Malcolm 174 ‘Och, away!’ Malcolm was genuinely shocked.
1976 Scotsman 24 Dec. 9/6 ‘It dropped a leg,’ said Dave, defensively. ‘Away,’ said Norman, ‘It was scratching itself.’
1988 G. Patterson Burning your Own iii. ii. 173 ‘Give's one,’ he said. ‘Away on,’ Mal told him. ‘Buy your own.’
2016 @chezally 16 July in twitter.com (O.E.D. Archive) Away ya big daftie.
11. Followed by with and a noun phrase denoting the object of the action. Usually as imperative. To go away with, get away with, take away, as away with all this doom and gloom. Now regional or archaic.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > place > removal or displacement > [phrase] > remove or take away
away?c1335
?c1335 in W. Heuser Kildare-Gedichte (1904) 140 ‘Nego’ is pouer clark [emended in ed. to clerk] in store... Awei wiþ ‘Nego’, vte of place.
1526 Bible (Tyndale) John xix. 15 Awaye with him, awaye with him [a1425 Wycliffite, L.V. Take awei, take awei], crucify him.
1577 Test. of XII Patr. 122 My children, away with hatred out of your hearts.
1583 G. Babington Very Fruitfull Expos. Commaundem. ii. 92 Yea, we would..bid away with it, and not abyde the sight of it.
1703 J. Tomkins Trumpet Sounded 68 Away with your Barbicude Hogs, and Merry Meetings, and your little small things.
1864 C. Dickens Our Mutual Friend (1865) I. ii. iii. 191 In his honest indignation he would reply, ‘Away with it!’
1998 Herald-Express (Torquay) (Nexis) 24 Aug. 15 Away with all this doom and gloom. Why are people so negative?
2018 @smokymozzarella 12 Aug. in twitter.com (accessed 11 June 2019) Och, away with your daft Questions 😂.
12. Following can (formerly also †may). Get on or along with, put up with; tolerate, endure, bear. Usually in negative contexts.See also can well away at well away adv. 2.† b. Followed by an infinitive. Obsolete.
a. Followed by with and nominal complement, as in they cannot away with idolatry. Now archaic and rare.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > emotion > calmness > patience > [adverb] > in forbearing or tolerant manner
away1477
tolerantly1822
forbearingly1831
toleratingly1893
1477 J. Paston in Paston Lett. & Papers (2004) I. 505 My chargys be gretter than I maye a-weye wyth.
1526 Bible (Tyndale) Matt. xix. f. xxvjv All men can not awaye with that saynge.
1587 A. Fleming et al. Holinshed's Chron. (new ed.) III. 27/1 He..could well awaie with bodilie labour.
1622 R. Sanderson Two Serm. Boston i. 58 He being the..Father of lies..cannot away with the Truth.
1642 Sir T. Browne Religio Medici 98 Some..can with greater patience away with death.
1748 S. Richardson Clarissa IV. xxiii. 119 That saucy fleer, I cannot away with.
1869 M. Arnold Culture & Anarchy (1882) 42 Jacobinism..cannot away with the inexhaustible indulgence proper to culture, the consideration of circumstances, etc.
1958 Contemp. Rev. Jan. 123 The critics..cannot away with what the obituary notices call his ‘obstinately elevated view of life’.
ΚΠ
1564 W. Bullein Dialogue against Feuer Pestilence (new ed.) sig. H.j Of all meates he moste loued a fat Pigge and a pudding, but he might not awaie to eate Communions.
1598 R. Bernard tr. Terence Andria i. ii, in Terence in Eng. 16 Men that be in loue, can ill away to haue wiues appointed them by others.
1658 H. Lavor Replies made to Antiqueries of Thomas Lye 41 Ye cannot away to hear of the Saints arrival to the measure of Christs stature.
B. adj.
1.
a. Of a sports fixture: played at the opponents' ground. Also: (of a score, win, etc.) gained at such a fixture.See also away goal n. at Compounds 2.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > sport > match or competition > [adjective] > home or away
home1826
home-and-home1829
away1886
out-and-home1887
road1896
1886 York Herald 30 Nov. 8/5 Middlesbro'..had a continuation of their bad luck which has attended them in all their away matches this season.
1907 Daily Chron. 14 Jan. 9/1 Thirteen drawn games and three away wins.
2010 Birmingham Evening Mail (Nexis) 24 Mar. 60 Wolves took their tally to seven points from three tough away games.
b. British. Of, relating to, or designating the side that is playing an away match. Also: (of kit) worn by a team when playing away.
ΚΠ
1977 Rep. Working Group on Football Crowd Behaviour (Sc. Educ. Dept.) App. 35 All-ticket arrangements must be considered whenever there is a particularly vulnerable match, especially where the combined numbers of the home and away supporters are likely greatly to exceed the capacity of the ground.
1989 Time Out 18 Oct. 22/1 His little brother plays in the garden wearing an exact replica of the Manchester United shirt—and agitates his father to buy him the away strip for Christmas.
1996 D. Brimson & E. Brimson Everywhere we Go ii. 24 The ground had become much better segregated and the chances to get at the away fans were almost zero.
1999 Spark (Reading Univ. Students' Union) 8 Mar. 28/3 The away side were unable to take their chances, missing their free-throws—on two occasions.
2011 S. Kelman Pigeon Eng. 17 The dead boy loved Chelsea as well. He had the proper shirt with Samsung on it, even the away kit.
2. Baseball. Designating a pitch towards the side of the home plate furthest from the batting player. Originally and chiefly as part of the adjective phrase low and away.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > baseball > [adjective] > types of pitching
sidearm1890
no-hit1898
low ball1915
blooper1937
bloop1947
away1950
route-going1950
split-finger1980
1950 Daily News (N.Y.) 13 Sept. 80/1 Blackie buzzed a strike over and then uncorked a low-and-away pitch that flew past his batterymate..for a wild pitch.
1962 Indiana (Pa.) Evening Gaz. 26 May 14/1 Say I get the hitter down with two low-and-away strikes. Next time I come back high and inside.
1975 Appeal Democrat (Marysville–Yuba City, Calif.) 3 May b2/4 I'm trying more to go to all fields, to hit the ball where it's pitched. It was an away pitch in the ninth so I just punched it to left.
2018 D. Green So you want to play College Baseball? 47 The batter could try to pull the away pitch and will either swing and miss or will roll over and hit a weak ground ball.
C. n.
British. Originally in the context of football pools: a win for the team playing at the opponents' ground; an away win. Now also: an away game. Cf. home n.1 10.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > entertainment > pastimes > betting > football pools > [noun] > win
away1935
pools win1957
1935 Daily Mail 4 Mar. 16/1 (advt.) 10-1 Three Homes. 10-1 Three Aways.
1962 P. Van Greenaway Crucified City x. 107 Men dreamed opium dreams spun out of eight draws or four aways.
1972 ‘R. Allen’ Skinhead Escapes vii, in Compl. Richard Allen (1992) I. 223 ‘Do they go to West Ham matches?’ ‘Every fortnight for the home games.’ ‘What about aways?’
2007 T. Barrett in N. Allt et al. Here we go gathering Cups in May (2008) 252 Having been to all the Champions League home games and four aways.
2018 Evening Gaz. (Middlesborough) (Nexis) 3 Nov. 11 Three aways out of four paid 16-1.
Phrases
P1. whither away?: where are you going? Now archaic and rare.
ΚΠ
1550 J. Heywood Hundred Epigrammes x. sig. Avv Whither awaie with my hens fox (quoth she)?
1699 J. Harris Love's Lottery i. ii. 4 Trick-well, well met—Whither away so fast, Man? prithee stay.
1899 J. Davidson Last Ballad 156 Poor Turlygod..stared and said With a mow and a nod, ‘Whither away, sir?’
1953 L. P. Hartley Go-between (2002) xvii. 218 Bon soir, thou dusky varlet, whither away?
P2. and away: (denoting discontinuance) and going away again; esp. in once and away at once adv., conj., adj., and n. Phrases 6.
ΘΚΠ
the world > time > frequency > infrequency > [adverb] > on one occasion > once only
onceOE
oncec1400
and away1562
once and away1574
for once and all1791–3
once in a lifetime1838
1562 T. Tusser Hundreth Good Poyntes Husbandry (rev. ed.) f. 38v Washe dishes, lay leauens, safe fyer and away, locke doores and to bed a good huswife will say.
1583 A. Golding tr. J. Calvin Serm. on Deuteronomie xvi. 96 It is not for a pang and away.
1655 W. Gurnall Christian in Armour: 1st Pt. 331 Short hints and away may please a Scholar.
P3.
a. colloquial (chiefly Irish English and Scottish) away in the head (also mind) and variants: in a state or condition resulting from mental disturbance; mad, out of one's wits, in a world of one's own; (also) in a drunken or drug-induced state. Similarly away with it.
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1816 W. Scott Antiquary II. xii. 315 He was like a man awa frae himsel.
1819 W. Scott Bride of Lammermoor vii, in Tales of my Landlord 3rd Ser. I. 249 He's daft—clean daft—red wud, and awa' wi't.
1880 W. H. Patterson Gloss. Words Antrim & Down 4 Away in the mind adj., mad. Away to the hills, gone mad.
1894 A. S. Robertson Provost o' Glendookie 101 He'a awa without his curran' loaf.
1894 P. H. Hunter James Inwick xx. 250 Tam Arnott's awa in the heid, an' spen's his days in his chair at the chimley-lugs knittin stockins.
1994 Chapman No. 77. 51 Chrissie, you know this, I'm as drunk as a skunk in a rug. Ach, I'm away wi it.
1996 W. Trevor After Rain 170 ‘Is Milton away in the head?’ ‘He's not himself certainly.’
b. away with the fairies: giving the impression of being mad, distracted, or in a dreamworld.Quot. 1818 refers to a person who is physically present but has seen supernatural visions.
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1818 C. K. Sharpe in R. Law Memorialls Pref. p. lxxxv Several of her neighbours said to her that she was taken away with the fairies.]
1934 W. W. Gill Manx Dial. 17 Away, of one who is dreamy, bemused, listless, or ‘in a decline,’ it is said that he or she is ‘away’. ‘Away with the fairies’ seems to have been the complete phrase, or at least the complete idea, formerly.
1985 M. Munro Patter 24 I can trust ye with nothin; ye're away with the fairies half the time.
2013 @winstonpeters 24 Jan. in twitter.com (O.E.D. Archive) If he believes that, he's away with the fairies.
P4.
a. away from (a person or thing): (used outside verb constructions) at a distance from, removed from; absent from; beyond the presence of.
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1782 F. Burney Cecilia III. vi. iv. 251 Cecilia had now but little leisure, for Lady Honoria would hardly rest a moment away from her.
1832 P. Benjamin Poem on Medit. of Nature 13 Away from men, The city's busy tumult and the sight Of all the sons of pleasure and of pain, Where the free soul must feel its human chain.
1851 H. Mayhew London Labour I. 329/1 A hill fair (that is where the fair is held upon a hill away from a town).
1928 Sunday Disp. 30 Sept. 2/2 A few hours away from the office wouldn't matter.
2009 Wire Apr. 63/3 Away from the hype and hysteria, much Grime was, and remains, an exercise in cold-blooded dramatic tension.
b.
(a) away from it all: in or to a place or condition that is removed from a situation regarded as stressful, unpleasant, or undesirable, or that is removed from everyday life; also as adj.
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1842 New-Hampsh. Statesman & Concord Reg. 22 Apr. I shall soon be away from it all. For myself it is pleasant to muse upon the brighter realms..beyond the dark wave of death.
1936 C. Belfrage (title) Away from it all. An escapologist's notebook.
1956 Daily Mail 14 Aug. 10/6 Linnitt lives so far away from it all that even the electric light seems to him a dangerous townee novelty.
1962 John o' London's 29 Nov. 506/1 A touch of away-from-it-all south sea island hoopla.
2014 E. Falcone Mommy, was Grandpa Nazi? 105 All he wanted now was a quiet stay on this island, away from it all.
(b) to get away from it all: to take a respite; to take a holiday, esp. in a remote place. Also occasionally to get far away from it all.
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1901 Cardiff Times 16 Nov. 2/6 Life seemed very dreary to Dick... He felt he would give anything to get away from it all, to take a much-needed holiday away from the scenes of his old worries.
1935 ‘A. Bridge’ Illyrian Spring i. 6 At least she was going to get far away from it all, and see lovely places.
1970 Daily Tel. 18 July 9 People who ‘get away from it all’ to a second home of their own in some remote and peaceful spot.
2017 Central & N. Burnett (Queensland) Times (Nexis) 15 June 34 Do you want to get away from it all on weekends?
P5. U.S. regional (esp. Maine), Canadian regional (esp. Maritime Provinces), and Caribbean. from away: from elsewhere, from outside the community.
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1870 17th Ann. Rep. State Superintendent Common Schools Maine App. 46 We can offer no sufficient inducement to draw teachers from away to take charge of our schools.
1888 Boston Jrnl. 6 Nov. 1/4 It is rumored that capitalists from away are making an effort to establish an industry in Rockland.
1987 E. Wright Body surrounded by Water xiv. 166 Maybe Joe will take you into his confidence in another twenty years. He'll forget you're from away.
2018 @yuus1999 30 Nov. in twitter.com (O.E.D. Archive) Mainers (used to be one) don't take to people from away.
P6. colloquial. to be away for slates: (a) (Irish English) to have started and be making good progress; to succeed; (b) (Liverpool) to depart hastily, to be in a hurry (rare).
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1930 Meath Chron. 2 Aug. 9/3 Meath were ‘away for slates’ as the saying goes, and there was no stopping them.
1958 Listener 6 Feb. 232/2 Me laddo gives me the griffin and I'm away for slates into the cokes.
1961 E. Partridge Dict. Slang (ed. 5) II. 985/2 Away for slates,..departing hastily: Liverpool.
1989 Times (Nexis) 4 Feb. We thought we were away for slates.
2016 @JMaguireCritic 27 Oct. in twitter.com (O.E.D. Archive) The Young Offenders [film] is away for slates... (Insert other Corkonian expressions of success and good fortune here).
P7. In imperative. Scottish. figurative. away you go: expressive of shock, incredulity, rebuff, etc. Cf. sense A. 10b(b).
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1973 A. Spence Rain Dance in Scottish Short Stories ix. 155 ‘Some a they pals a his wur merr bevvied than the two ae us pit thegether. Ah mean we knew we hud tae keep wursels right.’ ‘Away ye go!’
1985 W. McIlvanney Big Man ii. 63 Matt Mason overdid his expression of horror. ‘Away you go.’
1992 I. Banks Crow Road iii. 63 ‘Anyway; Fortingall is where some people say Pontius Pilate was born, and—’ ‘Whit?’ Andy said, wiping his beard. ‘Away ye go.’
1993 I. Welsh Trainspotting 97 Whin ye think aboot it though, it's Granty's poppy. He kin spend it oan whit he likes, Jackie said... Eventually Lenny spoke.—Away ye fuckin go.
2019 @tarisgal42 1 Jan. in twitter.com (O.E.D. Archive) Away ye go! Load of BALONEY.
P8. right away: see right adv. Phrases 1a.
Compounds
C1. Compounds of the adverb.
a. In combination with verbs, and (now only) with participial adjectives and verbal nouns, as in †away-bear, †away-fare, †away-go, †away-put, †away-take, †away-turn; away-stretching, away-swinging. [In Old English and Middle English (especially early Middle English) it is often unclear whether collocations of away adv. with immediately following verb should be interpreted as compounds; compare discussion of early use as separable verbal particle in the etymology section. In order to facilitate comparison with later usage such collocations have been treated here as compounds. Frequent in formations which were used to render Latin verbs in ab- ab- prefix and sometimes also verbs in ex- ex- prefix1 and re- re- prefix.]
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OE (Northumbrian) Lindisf. Gospels: John iv. 50 Credidit homo sermoni quem dixit ei Iesus et ibat : gelefde ðe mon ðæm uorde þæt uel ðone cuoeð him se hælend & aueg eade.
OE (Mercian) Rushw. Gospels: Matt. xvi. 4 Relictis illis abiit : forletende hie awegeode.
OE Aldhelm Glosses (Brussels 1650) in L. Goossens Old Eng. Glosses of MS Brussels, Royal Libr. 1650 (1974) 375 Abscedunt : perrexerunt, ferdan uel aweg gewitan.
OE Lambeth Psalter cxxxvi. 3 Qui abduxerunt nos : þa þe aweg læddon us.
?a1200 (?OE) Peri Didaxeon (1896) 13 Færunga hy [sc. cacote] atyweþ and færinga aweȝ ȝewiteþ buta ælce læcecrafte.
c1275 (?a1200) Laȝamon Brut (Calig.) (1963) l. 3217 Þat folc awi hald [emended in ed. to a-wai hald; c1300 Otho a-wei fleþ].
c1325 (c1300) Chron. Robert of Gloucester (Calig.) l. 8219 Þis cristinemen..gret preye awey bere.
a1375 (c1350) William of Palerne (1867) l. 2485 (MED) Þei founde al awei fare.
a1393 J. Gower Confessio Amantis (Fairf.) iv. l. 2492 (MED) That what man couthe aweie take The rust, of which thei waxen blake, And the savour and the hardnesse, Thei scholden take the liknesse Of gold or Selver parfitly.
a1400 Psalter (Vesp.) lxxxvii. 15 in C. Horstmann Yorkshire Writers (1896) II. 220 Wharto, lauerd, awaiputtes [L. repellis] þou bede mine?
a1400 Siege Jerusalem (Laud) (1932) l. 581 He say þe wrake on hem wende, & away tourneþ.
a1500 (c1340) R. Rolle Psalter (Univ. Oxf. 64) (1884) i. §1. 5 Blisful man the whilk oway ȝed noght in the counsaile of wicked [L. Beatus vir, qui non abiit in consilio impiorum].
a1500 (?a1425) tr. Secreta Secret. (Lamb.) 80 (MED) It away chasys appetyt.
1521 in W. Fraser Mem. Maxwells of Pollok (1863) I. 247 I haif sauld, analyt, and away put fra me..the landis of Pottartone.
1600 in J. R. N. Macphail Papers Sir William Fraser (1924) 232 To awayleid, sell, use and dispone thairupoun at thair pleasour.
1678 G. Mackenzie Laws & Customes Scotl. 168 Leivtenent Ker, pursued for ravishing and awaytaking Robert Cuninghame.
1729 in G. Fraser Lowland Lore (1880) 39 For his thefteously stealling and Away takeing out of the Barn of the sd Alexr. Reid ane Sackfull of Clean white Corn, Containing Fourteen Aughletts.
1865 Macmillan's Mag. July 275 Away-stretching leagues of brick and mortar.
2016 S. Giridhar & V. J. Raghunath From Mumbai to Durban xxviii. 308 Dravid, in a moment of indecision, gloved an away-swinging ball to Boucher.
b.
away-going n. now rare departure; cf. waygoing n.
ΚΠ
c1510 Gesta Romanorum (de Worde) sig. G.iv I kepte nothynge for my selfe and eche of you were well contente atte your awaye goynge.
a1601 R. Bruce Let. 5 June in D. Calderwood Hist. Kirk Scotl. (1845) VI. 131 A little before my away-going, they beganne to cast at my hand.
1901 W. Robertson Auld Ayr i. iii. 45 On my away-going the mare brought two carts of coals at wanst.
1968 Jrnl. Eng. & Germanic Philol. 67 418 The ‘down-going or away-going’ of the soul from God by an act of self-will is exactly what we have seen in Plotinus.
away-going adj. departing, leaving, going away (esp. designating an outgoing tenant); = way-going adj. 1.
ΘΚΠ
the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > going away > [adjective]
parting1562
away-going1709
departing1751
way-going1778
off-going1861
going1883
1709 in C. A. Malcolm Minutes Justices of Peace Lanarkshire (1931) 65 The away goeing tennant.
1819 Farmer's Mag. May 204 That induces the awaygoing tenant to take every advantage that his lease permits, and that wastes the time and the money of the entering tenant.
1965 Omnibus Rivers & Harbors, & Flood Control Bills: Hearings before Subcomm. on Rivers & Harbors & Subcomm. on Flood Control (U.S. House of Representatives, 89th Congr., 1st Sess.) iii. 1197 Away going tenants have in the past and are still receiving amounts for Scully leases far in excess of the fair market value of the improvements that have been placed on the land.
away-going crop n. the last crop sown by a tenant farmer before leaving a farm; = waygoing crop n. at waygoing n. Compounds 2.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > cultivation or tillage > cultivation of plants or crops > crop or crops > [noun] > crop taken by outgoing tenant
waygoing crop1665
away-going crop1794
1794 J. Granger Gen. View Agric. Durham 53 Leases are generally for short terms.., with the usual covenants to secure..to the tenant a quiet possession of the farm, and of his away-going crop.
1835 Tait's Edinb. Mag. Jan. 130 By the awa-gaun crap! Is't come to that, Sir, think ye?
1991 Oklahoma Law Rev. 44 487 Assuming the lease does not specify who is entitled to the crop, a tenant has a right to harvest the ‘away-going’ crop.
away swing n. Cricket swing (swing n.2 8g) away from the batter towards the offside, typically used by the bowler to make the batter edge the ball and give a catch to the wicketkeeper or slip fielders; = outswing n.Recorded earliest as a modifier.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > cricket > bowling > [noun] > a ball bowled > motion of ball > specific
curl1833
screw1840
devil1845
rise1845
work1846
break1851
spin1851
hang1866
bump1867
fire1888
leg-spin1888
air break1900
turn1900
underspin1901
off-spin1904
finger spin1905
swing1906
back-spin1916
outswing1921
inswing1927
away swing1936
wrist-spin1960
1936 Evening Tel. & Post (Dundee) 26 June (Late Extra ed.) 14/7 Is it advisable to put a premium on a certain type of bowling? Does it encourage too much off-spin and in-swing bowling as opposed to leg-break and away-swing bowling?
1977 Observer 26 June 24/3 Malone..seemed to have missed the bus by consistently pitching too short to trouble the batsmen with his away swing.
2003 Times of India 12 Nov. (Times Sport section) 17/5 Bracks has rediscovered his natural away swing to the left-handers.
away swinger n. Cricket a ball which swings (swing v.1 11d) away from the batter towards the off side; (also occasionally) a bowler who makes the ball move in this way; = outswinger n. 1.Bowlers typically use away-swingers to make the batter edge the ball and give a catch to the wicketkeeper or slips.
ΘΚΠ
society > leisure > sport > types of sport or game > ball game > cricket > bowling > [noun] > a ball bowled > types of delivery or ball
full toss1826
long hop1830
twister1832
bail ball1833
bailer1833
grubber1837
slow ball1838
wide1838
ground ball1839
shooter1843
slower ball1846
twiddler1847
creeper1848
lob1851
sneak1851
sneaker1851
slow1854
bumper1855
teaser1856
daisy-cutter1857
popper1857
yorker1861
sharpshooter1863
headball1866
screwball1866
underhand1866
skimmerc1868
grub1870
ramrod1870
raymonder1870
round-armer1871
grass cutter1876
short pitch1877
leg break1878
lob ball1880
off-break1883
donkey-drop1888
tice1888
fast break1889
leg-breaker1892
kicker1894
spinner1895
wrong 'un1897
googly1903
fizzer1904
dolly1906
short ball1911
wrong 'un1911
bosie1912
bouncer1913
flyer1913
percher1913
finger-spinner1920
inswinger1920
outswinger1920
swinger1920
off-spinner1924
away swinger1925
Chinaman1929
overspinner1930
tweaker1938
riser1944
leg-cutter1949
seamer1952
leggy1954
off-cutter1955
squatter1955
flipper1959
lifter1959
cutter1960
beamer1961
loosener1962
doosra1999
1925 Times 3 Aug. 4/4 Tate..tried his cover-dive on Mr. Haig's away-swinger, snicking it straight to Durston.
1962 Country Life 10 May 1088/3 Heath is..an accurate away-swinger.
2015 Independent (Nexis) 15 Apr. (Sport section) 58 His bowling needs no embellishment..; two perfect away swingers sandwiching a brutish bouncer that Mitchell fended to slip.
C2. Compounds of the adjective.
away goal n. (in team sports, esp. Association Football) a goal scored by a team while playing at the opposition's ground, esp. in the context of awarding a knockout tie drawn over two legs to the team with most such goals; frequently in away-goals rule.
ΚΠ
1898 Notts. Guardian 22 Jan. 3/4 The away goal average is exactly even.
1966 Times 17 Mar. 4/6 Within a trice West Ham had equalized, and that was as good as two goals, because in this competition away goals count extra.
1973 P. Arnold & C. Davis Hamlyn Bk. World Soccer 176/1 Both legs were drawn but Leeds came out on top on the away-goals rule, having twice come from behind to equalize in Turin.
1989 Guardian (Nexis) 13 Sept. Rangers went out..in the third round of the UEFA Cup on away goals after two draws, 1-1 and 0-0.
1998 Herald (Glasgow) (Nexis) 4 July 13 Kilmallie are odds on to make the step up to shinty's highest grade and..[they] have four away goals in the bank that they could find very handy if the tie is even at the end of 90 minutes.
2018 Evening Standard (Nexis) 20 Aug. (Sport section) 49 Watford scored an away goal yesterday.
away message n. a message indicating that a person is unavailable; esp. such a message transmitted electronically via email or an instant messaging or chat application.
ΚΠ
1988 Re: Fw: Away-service Away-service in comp.protocols.iso.x40 (Usenet newsgroup) 19 May By sending (once) the ‘away message’ or other auto answers as specially typed messages (e.g. user level acknowledgments), one gives the opportunity to the lists to adopt a special treatment.
2003 Sydney Morning Herald (Nexis) 12 Apr. (Computers section) 15 Some of the web-based [email] systems include an auto response or vacation message feature. The great thing about them is that you can change your away message, if necessary, while you are on holiday.
2017 N.Y. Times (Nexis) 21 Feb. (Late Final ed.) b1 At WhatsApp, the Status feature was originally conceived as a text-based away message... The updated Status feature replaces that text with richer multimedia.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, December 2019; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
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adv.adj.n.eOE