throw away — discard
phrasal verbB1IELTS 5+neutralcommon
To get rid of something you do not want or need by putting it in the trash.
Say it like a native
Textbook Please dispose of the packaging in the bin.
Native Just throw the packaging away.
'Throw away' is the everyday verb for binning something; 'dispose of' is formal/official.
Pattern: throw something away
In use
- I threw away all the old magazines last weekend.daily life
- If I see food in the fridge that's gone bad, I usually throw it away to avoid getting sick.IELTS speaking
Common mistake
✗ I threw away it.
✓ I threw it away.
With a pronoun, the object goes in the middle: 'throw it away'.
Common collocations
throw away + rubbish— the packaging, old clothes, rubbish, it
Don't confuse it
Not the same as 'give away', which means to give something to someone else for free.
Related
- throw away (waste an opportunity) — Another meaning of 'throw away' is 'waste an opportunity'; compare the examples to keep the meanings separate.