1.
to leave a place or a person
“Go away! I want to be alone.”
“The dog wouldn't go away.”
“Please go away.”
Synonyms: to leave, to get out
Phrasal verb
What does go away mean?
Meaning: to leave a place or a person
B1
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Quick answer
Go away = to leave a place or a person. Go away! = leave me alone! It also means to leave home for a holiday: We're going away next week. And it can mean to disappear: The pain went away. It has no object.
Meanings of the phrasal verb
2.
to leave home for a holiday
common“We're going away for two weeks.”
“Are you going away this summer?”
Synonyms: to go on holiday, to travel
3.
to disappear (a pain, a problem)
figurative“My headache went away.”
“The stain won't go away.”
Synonyms: to disappear, to fade
Word order
Intransitive (no object)
This phrasal verb does not take an object.
Forms
- Present Simple:
- go away
- Past Simple:
- went away
- Past participle:
- gone away
- -ing form:
- going away
Common mistakes to avoid
Go away or leave?
Leave can have an object: leave the room. Go away has no object. Leave the house ✓ / Go away the house ❌. To name the place, say go away from the house.
The order Go away! is often rude
Saying Go away! alone is very direct, even rude. To be softer, say Could you please leave me alone? or Give me some space, please. Keep Go away! for arguments or for games with friends.
Practice quiz
Question 1 / 3The Big Challenge question bank
Related pages: go away
Pages on a similar topic or with a similar use, so you can keep exploring.
What's next?
Go away: you understand the rule. Now practise it.
Understanding a rule is only the first step. On PLAY, you use it in real situations, at your own pace, until it becomes automatic.
Practise “go away” on PLAYFree · No sign-up · 3 minutes
For teachersGo away: a ready-to-use lesson sequence
The Academy gives you step-by-step exercises, answer keys and a tracking dashboard: you keep the teaching, and the tool takes care of the practice and the marking.
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English contestGo away: often tested in the English contest
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Frequently asked questions
What does go away mean?+
Go away has three meanings: (1) to leave a place or a person (Go away!); (2) to leave home for a holiday (going away for the weekend); (3) to disappear, for a pain or a problem (the pain went away).
What is the difference between go away and get away?+
Go away = simply to leave. Get away = to escape, often with effort. Go away is more neutral and general. Get away is about escaping.
Is it rude to say go away?+
The order Go away! is very direct and can be rude. To be softer, say Please leave or Could you give me some space? Be careful with it, especially with an adult you don't know.
What is the past simple of go away?+
Went away, because go is irregular: go → went → gone. She went away last summer = she went on holiday last summer.
What is a going-away party?+
It is a party for someone who is leaving, for example because they are moving house or going on a long trip. They threw her a going-away party = they organised a party for her before she left.
Updated on 12 November 2026 by the Big Challenge teaching team. Every year, more than 500,000 students across Europe take part in our English contest, created in 1999. Our teaching approach →
The Big Challenge · Updated on 12 November 2026 · Source: www.thebigchallenge.com/bl/academy/learn-english/phrasal-verbs/go-away
© The Big Challenge. Copying allowed for classroom use. Every year, more than 500,000 students across Europe take part in our English contest, created in 1999.