awhile
adv. timeadv. for a short time. You use it to describe staying in a place or doing an activity for a little bit.
adv. for a short, unspecified period of time. Often functions as an adverbial modifier of a verb.
Please stay awhile and talk to me.
After the long hike, the group decided to rest awhile by the river before heading back.
The traveler paused awhile to admire the sunset, reflecting on how much the landscape had changed since his last visit decades ago.
From Old English ane (“(for) a”) hwile (“while”).
Typically follows the verb it modifies; unlike the noun phrase 'a while', this single-word adverb cannot follow a preposition.
stay for awhilestay for a whileThe adverb 'awhile' already means 'for a time' — using it after the preposition 'for' is redundant. Use the two-word noun phrase 'a while' after prepositions.