take away
/ˌteɪk əˈweɪ/verb, preposition
take away is spelled T-A-K-E-A-W-A-Y: 8 letters. People search “take-away vs takeaway” about 30 times a month (Google, United States). As a verb, take away means “To remove something and put it in a different place” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in take away?
| Letters | 8: T-A-K-E-A-W-A-Y |
|---|---|
| In writing | a phrase: the frequency list counts single words |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Pairs people search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); Bing searches in the United States: the average month from September 2025 to August 2026 (Microsoft Advertising keyword data through DataForSEO, read September 30, 2026).
How do you pronounce take away?
- /ˌteɪk əˈweɪ/
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-au-take-away.ogg, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with take away
Word pairs people search, with the monthly searches for “a vs b” (G: Google, B: Bing, United States).
Also written: takeaway (one word or two).
Sources: Google and Bing searches (September 2025 to August 2026, through DataForSEO); English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
Forms of take away
- takes away present, singular, he/she/it
- taking away participle, present
- took away past
- taken away participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does take away mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 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.
- 3
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.
- 4
To subtract or diminish something.
If I have five apples and you take away two, how many do I have left?
- 5
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.
- 6
To make someone leave a place and go somewhere else. Usually not with the person's consent.
The police took him away for questioning.
- 7
To prevent, or limit, someone from being somewhere, or from doing something.
My job takes me away from home most weekends.
preposition
- 1
minus
Coordinate term: goes into
adjective
- 1
Of, or relating to food or drink intended to be consumed off the premises.
noun
- 1
An idea, lesson or conclusion learned at some event for future use.
- 2
AustraliaUKA takeout restaurant, or food from such restaurant.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Take away in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| Portuguese | levar embora, retirar, recolher , confiscar, segurar |
| French | retirer |
| German | wegnehmen |
| Spanish | quitar |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.