throw away

verb

To discard (trash, garbage, or the like), to toss out, to put in the trash.

“The team threw away its chance at the semifinals.”

Similar
see at discarddiscardflingtosstoss outtoss awaychuck outcast aside
First used 1520s
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Meanings

verbthrow away (third-person singular simple present throws away, present participle throwing away, simple past threw away, past participle thrown away)

present singular third person throws away · participle present throwing away · past threw away · participle past thrown away

  1. transitiveTo discard (trash, garbage, or the like), to toss out, to put in the trash.First known use 1520s

    Don't throw the newspaper away, it goes in the recycle bin!

    1 more example

    He wanted to throw away the cup, but he couldn't find a trash can.

    Synonyms: see at discard

  2. figurativelytransitiveTo waste, to squander.

    The team threw away its chance at the semifinals.

    3 more examples

    Voting for a third-party candidate sometimes feels like throwing your vote away.

    Mama, life has just begun. / But now I've gone and thrown it all away.

    1975, Freddie Mercury, “Bohemian Rhapsody” (song), in Queen (band), A Night at the Opera (album)

    Chelsea threw away two points when substitute Salomon Kalou gifted Valencia a penalty five minutes from time with a needless handball.

    2011 September 28, Jon Smith, “Valencia 1 - 1 Chelsea”, in BBC Sport
  3. slangAmerican footballTo intentionally throw an incomplete pass.
  4. idiomaticTo give lightly, in an offhand manner.

    As Gilly plays sitcom wife, reading aloud from a book while Sam tries to read his own across the table, she throws away a line about someone named Maynard once having annulled the marriage of someone named Prince Raggar and remarrying him in the same ceremony in Dorne.

    2017 August 13, Brandon Nowalk, “Oldtown offers one last game-changing secret as Game Of Thrones goes behind enemy lines (newbies)”, in The Onion AV Club, archived from the original on 17 Aug 2017

Synonyms & antonyms

verbTo discard (trash, garbage, or the like), to toss out, to put in the trash.

Similar
see at discard

More synonyms by meaning

verbthrow or cast away

Similar
discardflingtosstoss outtoss awaychuck outcast asidedisposethrow outcast outcast awayput away
Broader
get rid ofremovewaste

verbto remove

Similar
shedcastcast offshake offthrowthrow offdrop
Broader
removetaketake away
Also see
castcast asidecast awaycast offcast outchuck outdiscarddisposedropflingjunkpitchput awayshake offshedsquanderthrowthrow offthrow outtosstoss awaytoss outwanton

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

From throw + away. First attested in the late 14c.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Ancient Greek ἀποβάλλω
  • ἀποβάλλω (apobállō)discard or dispose of
Arabic طَرَحَ
  • طَرَحَ (ṭaraḥa)discard or dispose of
Bulgarian изхвърлям
  • изхвърлям (izhvărljam)discard or dispose of
Catalan llençar
  • llençardiscard or dispose of
Chinese Mandarin 棄置 /弃置, 扔
  • 棄置 /弃置 (qìzhì)discard or dispose of
  • 扔discard or dispose of
  • 扔掉 (rēngdiào)discard or dispose of
Czech vyhazovat, vyhodit
  • vyhazovatdiscard or dispose of
  • vyhoditdiscard or dispose of
Dutch weggooien
  • weggooiendiscard or dispose of
Esperanto forĵeti
  • forĵetidiscard or dispose of
Finnish heittää pois, heittää menemään
  • heittää poisdiscard or dispose of
  • heittää menemäändiscard or dispose of
  • heittää roskiindiscard or dispose of
  • heittää vesilintuadiscard or dispose of
French rejeter, jeter
  • rejeterdiscard or dispose of
  • jeterdiscard or dispose of
German fortwerfen, wegwerfen
  • fortwerfendiscard or dispose of
  • wegwerfendiscard or dispose of
Hebrew הִשְׁלִיךְ
  • הִשְׁלִיךְ (hishlích)discard or dispose of
Hungarian eldob
  • eldobdiscard or dispose of
Indonesian buang
  • buangdiscard or dispose of
Italian buttare via
  • buttare viadiscard or dispose of
Japanese 棄てる, 捨てる
  • 棄てる (suteru)discard or dispose of
  • 捨てる (suteru)discard or dispose of
Korean 버리다
  • 버리다 (beorida)discard or dispose of
Latin abiciō
  • abiciōdiscard or dispose of
Norwegian kaste
  • kastediscard or dispose of
Persian دور انداختن
  • دور انداختن (dur andâxtan)discard or dispose of
Polish wyrzucać, wyrzucić
  • wyrzucaćdiscard or dispose of
  • wyrzucićdiscard or dispose of
Portuguese deitar fora, jogar fora
  • deitar foradiscard or dispose of
  • jogar foradiscard or dispose of
Romanian arunca
  • aruncadiscard or dispose of
Russian выбра́сывать, вы́бросить
  • выбра́сывать (vybrásyvatʹ)discard or dispose of
  • вы́бросить (výbrositʹ)discard or dispose of
  • выки́дывать (vykídyvatʹ)discard or dispose of
  • вы́кинуть (výkinutʹ)discard or dispose of
Spanish tirar, echar
  • tirardiscard or dispose of
  • echardiscard or dispose of
  • desechardiscard or dispose of
  • botardiscard or dispose of
Swedish kasta bort
  • kasta bortdiscard or dispose of
Thai ทิ้ง
  • ทิ้ง (thing)discard or dispose of
Turkish atmak
  • atmakdiscard or dispose of
Ukrainian викида́ти, ви́кинути
  • викида́ти (vykydáty)discard or dispose of
  • ви́кинути (výkynuty)discard or dispose of
Vietnamese vất, vứt
  • vấtdiscard or dispose of
  • vứtdiscard or dispose of
  • vứt bỏdiscard or dispose of
  • bỏ đidiscard or dispose of
Cite this entry
APA

throw away. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/throw%20away

MLA

“throw away.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/throw%20away. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “throw away,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/throw%20away.

Source: throw away on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.