Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'away' holds a significant place in our vocabulary, denoting separation or movement in a direction opposite to the speaker. Its cultural importance is evident in various idiomatic expressions, such as 'away game' in sports or 'away message' in communication.
Moreover, the concept of 'away' is universal, making it a fascinating subject for language and culture enthusiasts. For instance, did you know that in Japanese, 'away' can be translated as 'soto' (外), while in Spanish, it's 'lejos' (lej-ohs)?
Understanding the translation of 'away' in different languages can enhance your cross-cultural communication skills and broaden your perspective on the world's diverse linguistic landscapes.
Join us as we explore the various translations of 'away' in different languages, from the romantic French 'loin' to the rhythmic Swahili 'nyuma'.
Afrikaans | weg | ||
Afrikaans "weg" comes from Dutch "weg" ("path; road") and has a secondary meaning "out of the house" | |||
Amharic | ራቅ | ||
The word "ራቅ" (away) in Amharic is also used to refer to a place that is far or distant. | |||
Hausa | tafi | ||
The word 'tafi' can also mean 'to run' or 'to escape' in Hausa. | |||
Igbo | pụọ | ||
The term 'pụọ' has been suggested to derive from proto-Igbo *pɔ̄, which also yielded the words meaning 'out', 'outside', or 'exceed'. | |||
Malagasy | lasa | ||
The Malagasy word "lasa" also means "later" or "for the next time". | |||
Nyanja (Chichewa) | kutali | ||
"Kutali" may also mean "behind" or "after". | |||
Shona | kure | ||
In Shona, "kure" can also refer to a direction or a time (past) rather than just a location. | |||
Somali | ka fog | ||
The etymology and alternative meanings of "ka fog" are not well established. | |||
Sesotho | hole | ||
The Sesotho word "hole" can also mean "gap" or "space". | |||
Swahili | mbali | ||
The word 'mbali' literally means 'place of the sun' or 'east' | |||
Xhosa | kude | ||
It is a locative stem used in toponyms, and is also used as a prefix in other words. | |||
Yoruba | kuro | ||
The Yoruba word "kuro" can also mean "to disappear," "to vanish," or "to be lost." | |||
Zulu | kude | ||
The word 'kude' also means 'the past' in Zulu, a reference to leaving it behind. | |||
Bambara | jàn | ||
Ewe | na | ||
Kinyarwanda | kure | ||
Lingala | mosika | ||
Luganda | obutabawo | ||
Sepedi | kgole | ||
Twi (Akan) | akyirikyiri | ||
Arabic | بعيدا | ||
The word "بعيدا", meaning "away" in English, is often used in Arabic to describe a distance or separation that is significant or notable. | |||
Hebrew | רָחוֹק | ||
רָחוֹק in Aramaic means 'soft', which is why its cognate רך in Hebrew means 'soft'. | |||
Pashto | لرې | ||
In addition to its literal meaning of "away", "لرې" also signifies "far in time or distance" or "in a remote or distant place" in Pashto. | |||
Arabic | بعيدا | ||
The word "بعيدا", meaning "away" in English, is often used in Arabic to describe a distance or separation that is significant or notable. |
Albanian | larg | ||
The word 'larg' in Albanian is a dialectal form of 'largo' in Venetian Italian, indicating distance. | |||
Basque | kanpoan | ||
Kanpoan (away) is a cognate of the Latin word campus (field). | |||
Catalan | de distància | ||
In Spanish a different form, "de distancia," is used to measure distances. | |||
Croatian | daleko | ||
"Daleko" is also the root of the word "daljina" which means "distance" | |||
Danish | væk | ||
"Væk" is a cognate of the English word "wake" and can also mean "awake" or "alert" in Danish. | |||
Dutch | weg | ||
Dutch "weg" (away) originates from Old Dutch "weġ" (path, way) and can still mean "path" today. | |||
English | away | ||
In 13th-century Middle English, "away" meant "on the way," from Old Norse "a vegi" meaning "away, on the way." | |||
French | un moyen | ||
The singular form of this word is used to mean "a way," "a means," or "a method." | |||
Frisian | fuort | ||
The word "fuort" in Frisian can also mean "off" or "out". | |||
Galician | lonxe | ||
The Galician word "lonxe" derives from the Latin "longinquus" meaning "distant" or "far away". | |||
German | weg | ||
The German word “Weg” has many meanings, and some are similar to the English word “way.” | |||
Icelandic | í burtu | ||
Í burtu' translates literally as 'in the direction of the back of something' (burtur is 'back' as in the rear end of an animal), and also commonly implies direction from a point of reference rather than complete separation from it. | |||
Irish | ar shiúl | ||
The phrase "ar shiúl" can also mean "on foot" or "walking". | |||
Italian | lontano | ||
The word "lontano" in Italian is derived from the Latin "longus," meaning "long" or "distant." | |||
Luxembourgish | ewech | ||
The word "ewech" has its roots in the Old High German word "awa", meaning "away from" or "out of". | |||
Maltese | bogħod | ||
The word 'bogħod' is related to the Arabic word 'bu'd', meaning 'distance' or 'separation'. | |||
Norwegian | borte | ||
The word "borte" can also mean "dead" or "late" in Norwegian. | |||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | longe | ||
The Portuguese word "longe" comes from the Latin word "longus", which also means "long" in English. | |||
Scots Gaelic | air falbh | ||
The etymology is unsure with air falbh possibly meaning ‘very distant’ | |||
Spanish | lejos | ||
The word "lejos" derives from the Latin "longe", meaning "far", and shares its root with the English word "long". | |||
Swedish | bort | ||
The etymology of the word "bort" (away) is uncertain, possibly from the Old Norse "burtu," meaning "from". | |||
Welsh | i ffwrdd | ||
The word "ffwrdd" has the same root as "fford" (road) due to the implication of moving away along a road. |
Belarusian | прэч | ||
Прэч is of Baltic origin and also means "to hell" or "devilry" and is used as a curse, but this usage is becoming rarer. | |||
Bosnian | daleko | ||
Daleko in Bosnian can also refer to a | |||
Bulgarian | далеч | ||
The Bulgarian word "далеч" also refers to a particular type of folk song known for its slow melody and sentimental lyrics. | |||
Czech | pryč | ||
"Pryč" is also used in the sense of "away with" in English, expressing a rejection or dismissal of something. | |||
Estonian | ära | ||
"Ära" also means "not to, don't," and in some fixed phrases has the meaning of "out" or "finished" | |||
Finnish | pois | ||
The Finnish word 'pois' also means 'off,' as in to turn off a light, and is related to the Baltic word for 'to spit'. | |||
Hungarian | el | ||
In the Hungarian language, "el\” is the most often used prefix for forming verbs of motion and can also mean "forth", "out", "along" or "over" depending on the context. | |||
Latvian | prom | ||
The word "prom" has no other meaning in Latvian. | |||
Lithuanian | toli | ||
The Lithuanian word "toli" has the same root as the Latin word "tollere," meaning "to lift up" or "to remove." | |||
Macedonian | далеку | ||
The word "далеку" in Macedonian is cognate to the word "далекий" in Russian, both meaning "distant" or "far away". | |||
Polish | z dala | ||
The word "z dala" in Polish, meaning "from a distance," is derived from the Proto-Slavic word *dalь, which also meant "distance". | |||
Romanian | departe | ||
In Romanian, "departe" not only means "away," but also "far" or "distant." | |||
Russian | прочь | ||
"Прочь" comes from the Proto-Slavic word *pročь, meaning "away, forth" | |||
Serbian | далеко | ||
In Serbian, the word "далеко" also means "distant" or "long-lasting." | |||
Slovak | preč | ||
The Slovak word "preč" is a contraction of the words "pre" (before) and "č" (time), suggesting the passage of time before something occurs. | |||
Slovenian | stran | ||
"Stran" in Slovenian can also mean foreign or unknown, deriving from the notion of "otherness". | |||
Ukrainian | далеко | ||
The Ukrainian word "далеко" also means "long ago" or "long time ago". |
Bengali | দূরে | ||
The word "দূরে" can also refer to a place or state of being distant or removed in time or space. | |||
Gujarati | દૂર | ||
The word "દૂર" in Gujarati can also mean "to remove" or "to get rid of". | |||
Hindi | दूर | ||
The word "दूर" (away) is derived from the Sanskrit word "दृ" (to see), suggesting a distance that is beyond the range of sight. | |||
Kannada | ದೂರ | ||
The word "ದೂರ" also means "far" or "distant" in Kannada. | |||
Malayalam | ദൂരെ | ||
The word "ദൂരെ" in Malayalam comes from the Proto-Dravidian root *tur-, meaning "far, distant." | |||
Marathi | लांब | ||
The Marathi word "लांब" (away) also means "long" and "tall" in other contexts, a polysemy that may be related to the idea of distance. | |||
Nepali | टाढा | ||
"टाढा" is derived from the Sanskrit word "दूर" and can also mean "far" or "distant". | |||
Punjabi | ਦੂਰ | ||
The word "ਦੂਰ" can also mean "far-fetched" or "unlikely" in Punjabi. | |||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) | ඉවතට | ||
Sinhala word "ඉවතට" derives from "ඉවක්" which is a synonym for distance, thus meaning "towards distance or far end". | |||
Tamil | தொலைவில் | ||
The word "தொலைவில்" can also mean "in a distant place" or "at a distance" in Tamil. | |||
Telugu | దూరంగా | ||
The Telugu word "దూరంగా" also denotes a sense of estrangement or aloofness. | |||
Urdu | دور | ||
In addition to meaning "away," "دور" (pronounced "door") can also mean "far," "distant," or "remote." |
Chinese (Simplified) | 远 | ||
远 originally meant "high up," which is still an alternate meaning today. | |||
Chinese (Traditional) | 遠 | ||
In Chinese, the character 遠 (away) is also used to describe a person's distant relative or ancestor. | |||
Japanese | 離れて | ||
"離れて" is the 連用形 (ren'yōkei) of the verb 離れる (hanareru), which means "to leave" or "to depart." | |||
Korean | 떨어져 | ||
"떨어져" can mean both "away" as in spatial separation or departure, and “separately,” as in distinguishing one thing from another. | |||
Mongolian | хол | ||
Хол derives from a Mongolian word meaning | |||
Myanmar (Burmese) | ဝေး | ||
In addition to "away," "ဝေး" (we:) can also mean "to be apart" or "to be separated." |
Indonesian | jauh | ||
"Jauh" is also a measure for distance, equivalent to 40 kilometers or 24.85 miles. | |||
Javanese | adoh | ||
In some varieties of Javanese, "adoh" means "that way," "far," or "away from the speaker," and is similar to the word "punika" or "niku" in other varieties. | |||
Khmer | ឆ្ងាយ | ||
The word "ឆ្ងាយ" also means "lonely" or "difficult to reach" in Khmer. | |||
Lao | ຫ່າງ | ||
The word "ຫ່າງ" can also mean "to be apart" or "to be separate". | |||
Malay | jauh | ||
Jauh is also used as a measurement of distance, where it means "far" or "distant". | |||
Thai | ออกไป | ||
"ออกไป" (away) has a root in Pali "อกฺขม" (to cast out), which is also the source of "อกหัก" (broken heart). | |||
Vietnamese | xa | ||
"Xa" in Vietnamese can also mean "distant" or "hometown". | |||
Filipino (Tagalog) | malayo | ||
Azerbaijani | uzaqda | ||
The word "uzaqda" in Azerbaijani originated from the Proto-Turkic verb "*uzak-'", meaning "to move far away". | |||
Kazakh | алыс | ||
"Алыс" (away) in Kazakh also means "sparse" and "unpopulated" | |||
Kyrgyz | алыс | ||
"Алыс" also means "far" in Turkish and "distant" in Uyghur | |||
Tajik | дур | ||
In Persian, the word “دور” can also mean “circle”. | |||
Turkmen | uzakda | ||
Uzbek | uzoqda | ||
The word "uzoqda" can also mean "in another place" or "in a different world." | |||
Uyghur | away | ||
Hawaiian | aku | ||
The Hawaiian word 'aku' can also mean 'far' or 'distant', and is cognate with the Māori word 'aku' meaning 'current' or 'flow'. | |||
Maori | haere atu | ||
The term "haere atu" not only means away but also denotes departure, a farewell, or going forth or proceeding | |||
Samoan | alu ese | ||
The word 'alu ese' in Samoan can also mean 'to go forward' or 'to move ahead'. | |||
Tagalog (Filipino) | palayo | ||
The word "palayo" in Tagalog has several other meanings, including "to stay away", "to avoid", and "to escape". |
Aymara | jaya | ||
Guarani | mombyry | ||
Esperanto | for | ||
The Esperanto word 'for' also means 'forwards or towards'. | |||
Latin | auferetur | ||
The Latin word "auferetur" is related to the verb "aufero," which means "to take away" or "to remove." |
Greek | μακριά | ||
The word 'Μακριά' can also indicate a state of distance or remoteness. | |||
Hmong | tseg lawm | ||
The Hmong word "tseg lawm" also means "far away" or "a long distance". | |||
Kurdish | serve | ||
The word "serve" in Kurdish can also mean "to turn" or "to become". | |||
Turkish | uzakta | ||
+ In Uzbek it means "tall". | |||
Xhosa | kude | ||
It is a locative stem used in toponyms, and is also used as a prefix in other words. | |||
Yiddish | אוועק | ||
The word "אוועק" can also mean "gone", "dead", or "finished". | |||
Zulu | kude | ||
The word 'kude' also means 'the past' in Zulu, a reference to leaving it behind. | |||
Assamese | আঁতৰত | ||
Aymara | jaya | ||
Bhojpuri | ओहटा | ||
Dhivehi | ދުރަށް | ||
Dogri | छिंडै | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) | malayo | ||
Guarani | mombyry | ||
Ilocano | adayo | ||
Krio | go | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) | دوور | ||
Maithili | दूर | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯂꯥꯞꯊꯣꯛꯄ | ||
Mizo | hmundang | ||
Oromo | irraa fagoo | ||
Odia (Oriya) | ଦୂରରେ | ||
Quechua | karu | ||
Sanskrit | दुरे | ||
Tatar | ерак | ||
Tigrinya | ንየ | ||
Tsonga | kule | ||