put away meaning: definition, quotations

put away

verb

13 senses

To put (something) in its usual storage place; to place out of the way, clean up.

1 more example

They burned the old gun that used to stand in the dark corner up in the garret, close to the stuffed fox that always grinned so fiercely. Perhaps the reason why he seemed in such a ghastly rage was that he did not come by his death fairly. Otherwise his pelt would not have been so perfect. And why else was he put away up there out of sight?—and so magnificent a brush as he had too.1879, Richard Jefferies, chapter 1, in The Amateur Poacher:

To store, add to one's stores for later use.

Colloquial To consume (food or drink), especially in large quantities.

You wouldn't think such a small person could put away so much food.
"Beautiful!" gasped the curate, gazing at Limpet with watering eyes; and Limpet, who seemed to find the curate's definition perfectly correct, put away the rest of his beer with professional skill, and waited for the curate to finish - a business which the curate, driven to desperation, accomplished in three frantic gulps that bereft him wholly of breath, and caused his eyes to water more than ever.1913, Norman Lindsay, A Curate in Bohemia, Sydney: N.S.W. Bookstall Co., published 1932, page 24:

2 more examples

The blonde one, old Bernice, was drinking bourbon and water. She was really putting it away, too.1951 July 16, J[erome] D[avid] Salinger, The Catcher in the Rye, Boston, Mass.: Little, Brown and Company, →OCLC, page 97:
He’s really putting it away! / NOMF NOMF2022, Hitomi Takano, translated by Kumar Sivasubramanian, “Happy Ending”, in My Boy, volume 9, New York, N.Y.: Vertical Comics, →ISBN, page 16:

To send (someone) to prison or mental asylum.

To kill someone.

It's Decoration Day. And I knew the Hill Boys would put us away, but my Daddy wasn't afraid. He said "We'll fight till the last Lawson's last living day"2003, Jason Isbell, Decoration Day:

Broadly To knock out an opponent.

Formal, Literary To discard, divest oneself of.

When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Corinthians XIII:11:

Obsolete To fend off, deflect; to dismiss.

Also he told kynge Arthur that he shold mysse hym / yet had ye leuer than al your landes to haue me ageyne / A sayd the kynge / syn ye knowe of your aduenture puruey for hit / and put awey by your craftes that mysauenture / Nay said Merlyn it wylle not be / soo he departed from the kynge.1485, Sir Thomas Malory, “j”, in Le Morte Darthur, book IV:

Archaic To divorce.

And the pharyſes cam and axed hym a queſtion: whether it were laufull foꝛ a mã to putt awaye hys wyfe.1526, [William Tyndale, transl.], The Newe Testamẽt […] (Tyndale Bible), [Worms, Germany: Peter Schöffer], →OCLC, Mark x:[2], folio lviij, verso:

Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports To take a large lead in a game, especially enough to guarantee victory or make the game no longer competitive.

Ball games, Baseball, Games, Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports To strike out a batter.

Ball games, Baseball, Games, Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports To catch a fly ball or tag out a baserunner.

Hobbies, Lifestyle, Sports, Tennis To hit the ball in such a way that the opponent cannot reach it; see passing shot.