walk away

Meaning

Literally, to move away from someone or something by walking. Figuratively, it means to withdraw from a difficult situation, relationship, or deal rather than trying to resolve it.

Examples

• She decided to walk away from the argument before she said something she would regret.

  She decided to walk away from the argument before she said something she would regret.

• The car was completely destroyed, but luckily the driver was able to walk away without a scratch.

  The car was completely destroyed, but luckily the driver was able to walk away without a scratch.

• It's hard to walk away from a job you've had for ten years, but I need a change.

  It's hard to walk away from a job you've had for ten years, but I need a change.

• Don't just walk away when I'm trying to talk to you!

  Don't just walk away when I'm trying to talk to you!

• We couldn't agree on a price, so we had to walk away from the deal.

  We couldn't agree on a price, so we had to walk away from the deal.

Common Mistakes

• ✗ He walked away the house.

  ✓ He walked away from the house.

  'Walk away' requires the preposition 'from' if you are specifying the starting point or the situation you are leaving.

• ✗ I had to walk out from the deal.

  ✓ I had to walk away from the deal.

  While 'walk out' can mean to abandon, 'walk away from' is the natural idiom for choosing to leave a negotiation or bad situation peacefully.

Related Expressions

Practice

• Sometimes, the smartest thing you can do during a heated fight is just to ___.

  💡 leave the situation

  Show answer

  walk away

• They offered me a terrible contract, so I had to ___ from the negotiation.

  💡 withdraw or refuse

  Show answer

  walk away