Take away means to remove something, or to take it from someone or somewhere: They took away my old sofa for free. In British cafés, “take away” means food or drink you take with you: Eat in or take away? The noun “a takeaway” means food to go, or a place that sells it.
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take + something + away (from + person/place); take away + pain/fear; eat in or take away?; a takeaway (= food to go)
- Could you take these boxes away? We need the space for the new desks.
- At the airport, security took my water bottle away because I'd forgotten to empty it.
- Would you like to eat in or take away?
What changed
First versionA large latte with me, please.
RevisionA large latte to take away, please.
“With me” turns the order into something like “a large latte, together with me”. In a British café, the phrase is “to take away”; in an American one, people say “to go”.
Don't confuse “a takeaway” with “the key takeaway”. The first, in Britain, means food to go: Let's get a takeaway tonight. The second is used in business and means the main point to remember: The key takeaway from the meeting is that we need more staff.
Your turn
The waiter ___ our empty plates as soon as we finished and brought the dessert menu.
Show the answer
took away — The waiter removes the plates from the table and carries them off, so “took away” is right. “Put away” means to put something back where it belongs, like dishes in a cupboard, but the waiter is simply clearing the table.
Think of an evening when you got food to take away. Say what exactly you ordered and where you ate it.
Last Friday we were too tired to cook, so we ordered noodles and spring rolls to take away and ate them on the balcony.
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