To save this word, you'll need to log in.
throw·away | \ ˈthrō-ə-ˌwā 
\
\Definition of throwaway
(Entry 1 of 3)
1 : designed to be thrown away : disposable throwaway containers
2 : written or spoken (as in a play) in a low-key or unemphatic manner
throwaway lines
3 : nonchalant, casual
4 : marked by a tendency to discard things : overly wasteful
a throwaway society
throwaway
nounDefinition of throwaway (Entry 2 of 3)
1 : one that is or is designed to be thrown away: such as
a : a free handbill or circular
b : a line of dialogue (as in a play) de-emphasized by casual delivery especially : a joke or witticism delivered casually
2 : something made or done without care or interest
3 : a child who has been forced to leave home or who has run away from indifferent or hostile parents
throw away
verbthrew away; thrown away; throwing away; throws away
Definition of throw away (Entry 3 of 3)
1a : to get rid of as worthless or unnecessary
b : discard sense 2b
2a : to use in a foolish or wasteful manner : squander
b : to fail to take advantage of : waste throw away an opportunity
3 : to make (something, such as a line in a play) unemphatic by casual delivery
Keep scrolling for more
Synonyms for throwaway
Synonyms: Verb
- cashier,
- cast (off),
- chuck,
- deep-six,
- discard,
- ditch,
- dump,
- eighty-six
- (or 86),
- exorcise
- (also exorcize),
- fling (off or away),
- jettison,
- junk,
- lay by,
- lose,
- pitch,
- reject,
- scrap,
- shed,
- shuck (off),
- slough (off)
- also sluff (off),
- throw out,
- toss,
- unload
Examples of throwaway in a Sentence
Verb
I should throw away that torn shirt.
if you buy a high-end computer, you'll just be throwing away money on a bunch of features you'll never use
Recent Examples on the Web: Adjective And using a reusable water bottle is way better for the environment than using throwaway plastic water bottles.
—
Kelsey Hurwitz, Woman's Day, "The Best Non-Perishable Food to Buy For Your Pantry," 30 Apr. 2020 Well, Biden mentioned it in kind of a throwaway line.
—
ABC News, "'This Week' Transcript 2-23-20: Amb. Robert O'Brien, Rep. Jim Clyburn," 22 Feb. 2020 She's not put in in a gratuitous way or throwaway moment.
—
Bryan Alexander, USA TODAY, "'I'm 92% terrified': Director J.J. Abrams unveils 'Star Wars': The Rise of Skywalker'," 17 Dec. 2019 Can Wait, to name but a few — there's arguably too much emphasis on neat patterns, seemingly throwaway details that turn out to have major payoffs later on.
—
Leslie Felperin, The Hollywood Reporter, "'Wander Darkly': Film Review | Sundance 2020," 5 Feb. 2020 The only allusion to romance between the two in the entire series was a throwaway moment in season one when Gideon gives Reid football tickets, and Reid asks JJ to go with him on what sounds awfully like a date.
—
Jenny Hollander, Marie Claire, "Will JJ & Reid Finally Get Together In Criminal Minds Season 15?," 18 Sep. 2019 The solution is revealed in a small, seemingly throwaway scene featuring one of terrorist Hans Gruber’s henchmen, Uli, played by the great character actor Al Leong.
—
Tim Carman, Washington Post, "The 10 greatest food scenes from holiday movies and what they really mean," 18 Dec. 2019 The solution is revealed in a small, seemingly throwaway scene featuring one of terrorist Hans Gruber’s henchmen, Uli, played by the great character actor Al Leong.
—
Tim Carman, Washington Post, "The 10 greatest food scenes from holiday movies and what they really mean," 18 Dec. 2019 The solution is revealed in a small, seemingly throwaway scene featuring one of terrorist Hans Gruber’s henchmen, Uli, played by the great character actor Al Leong.
—
Tim Carman, Houston Chronicle, "The 10 greatest food scenes from holiday movies and what they really mean," 24 Dec. 2019 Recent Examples on the Web: Noun According to Pro Football Focus, Patterson’s adjusted completion rate – which factors in drops, throwaways, spiked balls, and passes that were batted or thrown while absorbing contact – was 65.3%, well ahead of his actual success rate of 56.2%.
—
Rainer Sabin, Detroit Free Press, "Why Michigan football QB Shea Patterson looks better with benefit of advanced metrics," 28 Jan. 2020 But those numbers are skewed a bit by Tom Brady’s ability to get rid of the football before taking a negative play; Brady has 24 intentional throwaways, second only to Aaron Rodgers (29).
—
BostonGlobe.com, "Thankfully, I’m here to help. Here are five areas where the Patriots need to improve over the second half of the season (numbers courtesy of Stats LLC):," 15 Nov. 2019 Twyla’s role didn’t demand the hammy virtuosity that powered the series past cutesiness; sometimes the character felt like a throwaway.
—
Eren Orbey, The New Yorker, "The “Schitt’s Creek” Series Finale: The Vindication of Twyla," 8 Apr. 2020 Oddly’s Oddities, which will follow the season 11 champ to thrift stores in search of throwaway items to turn one queen’s trash into another’s fashion treasures.
—
Joey Nolfi, EW.com, "Miss Vanjie becomes dessert in Shuga Cain's Gimme Some Shuga preview," 5 Aug. 2019 More technologically, Erwin Timmers sets panels made of recycled glass into metal frames, using throwaway items such as plastic-bottle bottoms as molds.
—
Washington Post, "In the galleries: Cultures, collisions, climate change and French connections," 10 Jan. 2020 And while reaching zero waste might stay a someday-goal, reducing throwaways while amping up your kid’s party is totally doable.
—
Jamie Kiffel-alcheh, National Geographic, "How to throw an (almost) zero-waste birthday party," 26 Feb. 2020 In my mind this was the throwaway dish, but that is one of the bestsellers!
—
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Creator of Hmong pop-up meals serves the lessons of life, from refugee camp to restaurant," 17 Feb. 2020 His spare verses on a throwaway remix still sounded well-rehearsed and album-ready, proving this Grande classic is just as much of a banger with a feature from the late rapper.
1.
—
Brenton Blanchet, Billboard, "The 10 Best Ariana Grande Songs That Were Never Officially Released," 18 Sep. 2019
See MoreThese example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'throwaway.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Keep scrolling for more
Keep scrolling for more
More Definitions for throwaway
throwaway
adjectiveEnglish Language Learners Definition of throwaway
: made to be thrown away after use
: made or said with very little thought
: tending to throw things away instead of keeping them and using them again : very wasteful
Comments on throwaway
What made you want to look up throwaway? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
Test Your Vocabulary
May 2020 Words of the Day Quiz
- Which is a synonym of exiguous?
Can you spell these 10 commonly misspelled words?
TAKE THE QUIZ
Test Your Knowledge - and learn some interesting things along the way.
TAKE THE QUIZLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridgedWords at Play
Ask the Editors
Share throwaway
Time Traveler for throwaway
The first known use of throwaway was in the 14th century
See more words from the same century