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out-of-the-way

out-of-the-way

9 4.3
Already finished and no longer needing attention
  • adjective
translation icon : resuelto
  • With those preliminaries out of the way, we can turn to the matter at hand.

You know, you're getting that out of the way to make room for this.

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Examples

  • Once all of the formalities were out of the way, we got down to the nitty-gritty of getting to know one another.

    Academic text (2015)
  • Once I got those two issues out of the way, the rest worked pretty smoothly.

    Blog text (21)
  • But we're going to get that out of the way right away.

  • I should probably tell you something now, just to get it out of the way.

  • Let's get the big one out of the way, shall we?

    Blog text (21)
  • But now that we've gotten that out of the way, it's time for the evidence.

    Blog text (1)
  • So with that out of the way, let's get right into the actual sort of meat of this, which is the details of the V Core VRM and the HBMVRM.

  • Now that we have the introductory remarks out of the way, we can start our main discussion.

  • Once the initial questions were out of the way, the meeting became much more productive.

  • With all the formalities out of the way, we can finally enjoy the celebration.

Synonyms

out of the way
vsout-of-the-way
134 3.7

Finished so it no longer blocks progress

is about being handled so it needs no further attention
out of the picture
vsout-of-the-way
30 5.1

Not involved in or told about a situation

refers to an issue being finished rather than absence from involvement
all over with
vsout-of-the-way
  • Informal
5 2.8

Finished and no longer happening

emphasizes being handled so no further attention is needed
done and dusted
vsout-of-the-way
  • UK
3 5.6

Completely finished and settled so nothing more needs doing

focuses on being finished so it requires no more attention

Antonyms

401 3.5

Still happening and not finished

117 3.4

Not finished because some parts or steps are missing

18 3.0

Waiting for a decision or result

How Finished

completed
1.0
resolved
3.2
out-of-the-way
9 4.3
pending
18 3.0

Surface Forms

out-of-the-way positive

Morphology

out-of-the-way = way (semi-transparent) = out + of + the + way

The literal composition is visible, but the sense 'dealt with/finished' (removed from consideration) is a conventionalized extension that is not fully predictable from the parts.

Etymology

Out-of-the-way comes from the idea of moving something out of your **way' so it no longer blocks you. So when a task is 'out-of-the-way' it is done or dealt with and no longer needs attention.