The English phrase “take away” has six meanings. You can learn phrase expressions that are difficult to guess from the meanings of English words alone. Here is the secret to learning English that can be used globally!

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Video about the phrase “take away”

Meanings of “take away”｜Summary

  1. To carry off something from its current location.
  2. To bring someone to a place for excitement or romance.
  3. To arrest and detain someone.
  4. To rescind someone’s access to something as a form of punishment; to cut off.
  5. (Noun) The main point to remember from a lesson, presentation, etc.
  6. (Noun) Food that is from a restaurant and picked up by the customer to be eaten elsewhere.

*Following are definitions and example sentences of the English phrase “take away.”

1st meaning – To carry off something from its current location.

e.g.1 The dogcatchers came and took away the stray dog that was frightening the children.

Note: “stray” means “to wander, as from a direct course”.

e.g.2 The cops came and took away the homeless persons’ shelters in the city park.

2nd meaning – To bring someone to a place for excitement or romance.

e.g. Nancy asked Ron to take her away and live together on his ranch.

Note: “Ranch” means a large area of land where cattle or other animals are bred.

3rd meaning – To arrest and detain someone.

e.g. The Hong Kong police took the demonstrators away and locked them up in jail.

4th meaning – To rescind someone’s access to something as a form of punishment; to cut off.

e.g. 1 He was charged with his second DUI, so the judge took away his drivers license.

Note: “DUI” means ”Driving Under the Influence”.

e.g.2 My parents took away my smart phone because I was always checking SNS sites.

5th meaning – (“takeaway” noun) The main point to remember from a lesson, presentation, etc.

e.g. The main takeaway from this meeting is that we must raise cash before the end of next month.


6th meaning – (Noun) Food that is from a restaurant and picked up by the customer to be eaten elsewhere.

e.g. Let’s get some takeaway from the Thai restaurant.

Meanings of “take away”｜Video for review
Another phrase of “take”