adverb

away

Translation

away, off, absent

Please go away.

The beach is five miles away.

She is away on business.

He worked away at his desk.

((verb)) + away to or at a distance from a particular place, person, or thing Go away.

((distance)) + away at a specified distance The store is a mile away.

be away to be absent from a place She is away for the week.

Synonyms: off, aside, elsewhere; Antonyms: here, near

From Old English 'onweg', literally 'on the way', which came to mean moving off or departing.

Think of it as being 'a way' from here. It signifies distance or absence from a point of reference.