take away

See also: takeaway and take-away

English

Verb

take away (third-person singular simple present takes away, present participle taking away, simple past took away, past participle taken away)

1. To remove something and put it in a different place.

   Mother took our plates away and came back with some fruit for us to eat.

2. To remove something, either material or abstract, so that a person no longer has it.

   The teacher took my mobile phone away until the end of the lesson.

   The new law will take away some important rights from immigrant residents.

   The doctor gave me pills to take away the pain.

   1. To remove a person, usually a family member or other close friend or acquaintance, by kidnapping or killing the person.

      The mother of the murdered man spoke directly to the man who took away her son, then addressed the judge, whom she trusted would impose the maximum sentence.

3. To subtract or diminish something.

   If I have five apples and you take away two, how many do I have left?

   • 2011 January 22, Ian Hughes, “Arsenal 3 - 0 Wigan”, in BBC‎^[1]:

     But take nothing away from Arsenal, who were driven on by the brilliance of Van Persie and Fabregas and only prevented from being out of sight at half-time by the feats of Al Habsi.

4. To leave a memory or impression in one's mind that you think about later.

   I took away the impression that the play was under rehearsed.

5. (of a person) To make someone leave a place and go somewhere else. Usually not with the person's consent.

   The police took him away for questioning.

   I'm taking you away to the country for a rest. It's for your own good!

6. (of a person) To prevent, or limit, someone from being somewhere, or from doing something.

   My job takes me away from home most weekends.

   Using the internet so much can take you away from your studies.

Usage notes

All senses are transitive and the object may appear before or after the particle. If the object is a pronoun, then it must be before the particle.

Synonyms

• (To remove something, either material or abstract, so that a person no longer has it.): deprive, divest, dispossess, fortake, strip

Translations

to take away — see remove

to remove something and put it in a different place

• Belarusian: выно́сіць impf (vynósicʹ), вы́несці pf (výnjesci)
• Estonian: please add this translation if you can
• Finnish: viedä (fi), ottaa pois, ottaa (fi)
• Galician: sacar (gl), recoller (gl), retirar (gl)
• Gothic: 𐌰𐍆𐌽𐌹𐌼𐌰𐌽 (afniman)
• Khmer: យកចេញ (yɔɔk cəñ)
• Latin: auferō (la)
• Latvian: please add this translation if you can
• Lithuanian: please add this translation if you can
• Portuguese: levar embora, retirar (pt), recolher (pt)
• Sanskrit: हरति (harati)
• Thai: please add this translation if you can
• Vietnamese: please add this translation if you can

to remove something, either material or abstract, so that a person no longer has it

• Arabic:

  Egyptian Arabic: ودى‎ (wadda)

• Egyptian: (jṯꜣ)
• Estonian: please add this translation if you can
• Finnish: ottaa (fi), viedä (fi), ottaa pois, riistää (fi)
• French: retirer (fr)
• Galician: sacar (gl), quitar (gl), toller (gl)
• German: wegnehmen (de)
• Gothic: 𐌱𐌹𐌽𐌹𐌼𐌰𐌽 (biniman)
• Greek:

  Ancient: ἀφαιρέω (aphairéō)

• Italian: togliere (it)
• Khmer: យកទៅ (yŭəktɨw)
• Lao: please add this translation if you can
• Latin: adimō (la)
• Latvian: please add this translation if you can
• Lithuanian: please add this translation if you can
• Old English: oftēon
• Portuguese: retirar (pt), confiscar (pt), segurar (pt), ficar com, reter (pt)
• Quechua: qichuy
• Sanskrit: जिहर्ति (jiharti), हरति (harati)
• Spanish: quitar (es)
• Thai: please add this translation if you can
• Tocharian B: sāmp-
• Vietnamese: please add this translation if you can

to subtract or diminish something

• Finnish: ottaa (fi), ottaa pois, riistää (fi)
• Galician: quitar (gl), sacar (gl)
• Portuguese: tirar (pt), tirar fora, retirar (pt)

to leave a memory or impression in one's mind that you think about later

• Finnish: saada (fi)
• Portuguese: ficar com
• Vietnamese: rút kinh nghiệm

to make someone leave a place and go somewhere else

• Finnish: viedä pois, viedä (fi)
• Galician: levar (gl), conducir (gl)
• Portuguese: conduzir (pt), levar (pt), retirar (pt)

to prevent, or limit, someone from being somewhere, or from doing something

• Finnish: pitää loitolla
• Galician: afastar (gl), quitar (gl)
• Portuguese: afastar (pt)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Dutch: ^{(please verify)} weghalen (nl), ^{(please verify)} wegnemen (nl), ^{(please verify)} afpakken (nl)
• Irish: ^{(please verify)} bain de
• Italian: ^{(please verify)} portare via, ^{(please verify)} asportare (it), ^{(please verify)} rubare (it), ^{(please verify)} togliere (it), ^{(please verify)} levare (it)
• Norman: ^{(please verify)} remporter (Jersey)

See also

• take away from
• take-away
• takeaway

Preposition

take away

1. minus

   Five take away two is three. $(5-2=3)$

Noun

take away (plural take aways)

1. Actions of subtraction or subtracting exercises.

See also

• takeaway

Swedish

Noun

take away

1. Alternative form of takeaway

References

• take away in Svensk ordbok (SO)