# send away

CEFR B1 · Phrasal verb

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/send-away
Updated: 2026-10-22

## Definition

to tell someone to leave or to order them to go to another place. You use this when you want someone to go away or when you send a child to a school far from home.

For teachers: To dismiss someone or order them to depart; to dispatch a person to a distant location. The verb is transitive and optionally separable.

## Examples

- The manager had to send away the angry customer.
- When the children became too noisy, their mother sent them away to play in the garden while she finished her work.
- The disgraced diplomat was sent away to a minor post in a remote province, effectively ending his influence within the capital's political circles.

## Pitfalls

- Not "The teacher sent away him." but "The teacher sent him away." — If the object is a pronoun like 'him' or 'them', it must go between the verb and the particle.

## Usage notes

- This verb is separable, so you can put the object between 'send' and 'away'.
- Teaching tip: Contrast with 'send off', which is often used in sports for a player being told to leave the field.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.