keep away meaning: definition, quotations

keep away

verbalso spelled keep-away

To refrain from coming (near).

I'm keeping away from Joe until he calms down.

To prevent from coming (near).

Keep your children away from the construction site: it's dangerous!
The burnt and bleeding man staggered to his feet, dazed and unbelieving, and asked the startled townspeople who came running whether his fireman and guard were safe. He was kept away from the smouldering crater where his engine had been, and taken to hospital.2022 January 12, Benedict le Vay, “The heroes of Soham...”, in RAIL, number 948, page 43:

keep-away

noun

US /ˈkipəˌweɪ/

A children's game in which players pass an object, usually a ball, between each other while trying to prevent a selected player from intercepting it, and if said selected player catches the ball, he or she exchanges places with whoever last touched it.

Synonyms: keepings off, piggy in the middle, salugi