Throw away means to get rid of something you no longer need, and also to waste something valuable (a chance, money, time). You throw away things: throw away old shoes. You also throw away what you could have used well: throw away a chance.
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throw + something + away; throw it/them away; throw away + a chance / money
- I finally threw away the old magazines that had been lying in the hall for months.
- Don't throw away the receipt until you're sure the jacket fits.
- He threw away a great job offer because he didn't want to leave his home town.
What changed
First versionPaying for a gym you never visit is like throwing money to the wind.
RevisionPaying for a gym you never visit is like throwing money away.
“Throwing money to the wind” is not an English expression. In English, wasted money is simply thrown away: throw money away. There is an idiom “throw caution to the wind”, but it means to stop being careful and take a risk, and it has nothing to do with money.
“Throw out” also means to get rid of something, and you can use either about an old sofa: throw out the old sofa. But “throw out” has another meaning, to make someone leave: They threw him out of the bar. A wasted chance is described with “throw away”: Don't throw away this opportunity.
Your turn
These yoghurts are two weeks past their use-by date, so please ___.
Show the answer
throw them away — “Them” is a pronoun, so it goes between “throw” and “away”: throw them away. A noun can come after “away” (throw away the yoghurts), but a pronoun cannot.
Write about something you recently threw away or wish you had not thrown away. Name the thing and explain why you got rid of it.
I threw away my old university notes to free up shelf space, and now I wish I had kept them.
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