to walk away
876
3.5
- phrasal verb
- /wɔk əˈweɪ/
- With that, he chuckled and walked away to his new job.
- just walk away
- simply walk away
- a person walks away
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Watch on YouTubeI don't watch a single thing once he walks away, they do.
- I don't watch a single thing once he walks away, they do.
- He doesn't walk away as so many did.
- So now when I walk away from him, he asks me.
- And then when she walks away, he says all right, bye.
- You can absorb, digest, walk away and come back when you're ready.
- And that's that's the biggest thing If people walk away going OK, I'm overwhelmed.
- But you know, I may just walk away from the whole thing.
- I knew that I have to walk away from this, and I did.
- Yeah, by and large, we walk away from good deals with bad people.
- People carve out their own solutions and just walking away isn't an option for most.
- It's not as simple as walk away and preserve yourself.
- And when you're done, you walk away and the audio is gone.
Examples
-
I could've walked away last night, but I didn't.
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Look, I'm trying to walk away from you.
-
But you know, I may just walk away from the whole thing.
-
I knew that I have to walk away from this, and I did.
-
All you gotta do is walk away and leave it with us.
-
And I just made a decision that I would walk away quietly.
-
Wisdom is knowing when to walk away and save yourself.
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At some point, John got up abruptly and walked away from the table.
Academic text (2011) -
After hearing their argument, she decided to walk away from the conversation.
-
He realized it was best to walk away from a toxic relationship and move on.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
To go away from a place, person, or group
∞
1.0
Leave a place or situation
∞
1.0
Leave a place to do a task, for example to help people
∞
3.0
Leave a place quickly or suddenly
926
1.0
To leave a place or person and go somewhere else
907
1.6
To leave secretly and quickly to get away from danger or control
805
3.4
Leave a place suddenly because you are angry or protesting
570
9.9
To leave a place quickly, often suddenly
550
8.4
To leave a place and move away
549
3.2
To leave a place quickly, often to travel somewhere else
443
2.8
Move away from someone, or stop taking part in something
361
2.0
Leave a place suddenly, often to avoid someone or something
311
2.8
To stop taking part in a place or activity
288
3.1
To leave a meeting or event suddenly to show you disagree
232
2.3
Leave a room or building briefly
228
3.4
To stop being involved in an activity or agreement
225
4.0
To move back from a place or plan to avoid danger
170
1.3
To leave a place to start a journey
153
3.5
To move away from people or a place to create space
106
3.5
To leave a place suddenly to show you are angry or upset
58
6.5
To go away from a place, often suddenly or for good
36
8.1
Tell someone to leave in a rude way
30
3.9
Say goodbye to people and go away from a place politely
17
7.7
Leave a place quickly, often in a rude way
17
6.8
Leave a place or start a journey
9
4.0
To move back from a place or position, often to a safer spot
7
4.9
Leave a place suddenly and quickly because you feel scared
4
2.5
Leave a place quickly because you are in a hurry
4
1.0
To leave a place and not return
2
9.9
To leave a place quickly because you do not want to be there
1
7.7
To move quietly to the side and away so people do not notice you
1
7.7
To say goodbye and leave politely
Leave a place after a bad experience and not return
To leave a place suddenly, usually to go somewhere else
To leave a place quickly, often to avoid trouble
Leave a place quickly because you are not welcome
Antonyms
How Decisive
- Informal
16
6.6
- Informal
805
3.4
876
3.5
∞
1.0
93
3.6
Surface Forms
Morphology
The meaning 'to leave a place, situation, or person' is directly and predictably derived from combining 'walk' (to move on foot) with 'away' (indicating movement away from something); the directional/separative sense and any deliberate/detached nuance are transparent. This motion verb + away construction is common across languages and follows a standard compositional pattern, so a B1 learner who knows both words would readily infer the MWE meaning.
Etymology
The phrasal verb walk away comes from the simple image of someone walking out of a scene and moving away, showing they leave and stop taking part. So today it means 'to leave' a person or situation, often on purpose to avoid more trouble.