straightaway

1 of 3

adverb

straight·​away ˌstrāt-ə-ˈwā How to pronounce straightaway (audio)
: without hesitation or delay

straightaway

2 of 3

adjective

straight·​away ˈstrāt-ə-ˌwā How to pronounce straightaway (audio)
1
: proceeding in a straight line : continuous in direction
2

straightaway

3 of 3

noun

straight·​away ˈstrā-tə-ˌwā How to pronounce straightaway (audio)
: a straight course: such as
a
: the straight part of a closed racecourse : stretch
b
: a straight and unimpeded stretch of road or way

Examples of straightaway in a Sentence

Adverb He found the information straightaway. he got to the hospital, and straightaway he was admitted and given intravenous fluids Adjective her first novel was a straightaway success the doomed ship was headed on a straightaway course in the path of the iceberg
Recent Examples on the Web
Adverb
My ideal scenario starts with going into a used bookstore and finding something wonderful by pure serendipity, then taking it off somewhere to start reading it straightaway. New York Times, 30 Mar. 2023 The ornithologists realized straightaway that many birds in the training data set had been misclassified because of the crowdsourced workers’ limited ornithological knowledge. Dan Greene, IEEE Spectrum, 21 Nov. 2018 But that’s not what’s happening when uninformed and inexperienced e-scooter riders injure themselves straightaway. Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 10 Oct. 2019 Obviously, people always want to see results straightaway but that’s not how things work. San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 Sep. 2019 The idea was to design algorithms that would recognize interesting phenomena encountered in the rover's surroundings during traverses and either notify the science team on Earth asking for instructions or examine those phenomena straightaway. Jacek Krywko, Ars Technica, 16 July 2018 Leaders of big corporations are confident people; they are used to making decisions quickly and implementing them straightaway. Christopher Chabris and Matthew Brown, WSJ, 25 Apr. 2018 Why not go straightaway at China, do something specific against China rather than the entire aluminum and steel industry? Fox News, 11 Mar. 2018 All new players are judged, if not straightaway, then quickly. Rory Smith, New York Times, 5 Jan. 2018
Adjective
The second was a 415-foot shot to straightaway center field on Tuesday against the Mets’ Jorge Lopez, who has 230 career MLB appearances and was an All-Star in 2022. Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 27 Feb. 2024 The 6-2 point guard had 25 points, including a straightaway bucket from just inside the arc with 47 seconds left in a 59-53 win over Brophy Prep before an overflow crowd Wednesday. 3. Richard Obert, The Arizona Republic, 8 Jan. 2024 Andrews rose from straightaway beyond the arc, his shot going off the side of the rim with 15 seconds left. Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 30 Dec. 2023 There were 80 businesses that applied to the straightaway program. Detroit Free Press, 2 June 2023 Or that Heyward’s only at-bat had been a scorching blast to straightaway center. Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 26 Sep. 2023 Mountcastle hit a solo home run to straightaway center field in Monday’s one-run victory and reached base four times, going 2-for-2 with two walks, in Tuesday’s loss. Jacob Calvin Meyer, Baltimore Sun, 27 July 2023 Batting leadoff, Yelich hit a 424-foot home run straightaway center field off Rockies starter Connor Seabold, coming off his bat at 107.9 mph. Bob Nightengale, USA TODAY, 4 July 2023 The Cubs racked up four hits against the right-hander in the second with the first, a leadoff double by Dansby Swanson, a ball that Wiemer ran down in straightaway center field but failed to glove. Todd Rosiak, Journal Sentinel, 3 July 2023
Noun
Jason Lamy Chappuis of France overtakes American Johnny Spillane on the final straightaway for the gold medal, winning four-tenths of a second ahead of Spillane. 2015 — Mikaela Shiffrin becomes the third woman to win back-to-back slalom titles at world championships. Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 14 Feb. 2024 After a straightaway of hundreds of yards, the tunnel jagged past a caved-in section where the IDF said Hamas tried to booby-trap the tunnel. Matt Gutman, ABC News, 21 Jan. 2024 Devlin DeFrancesco had an issue with his right front tire, causing his car bottom out along the back straightaway. Scott Horner, The Indianapolis Star, 26 May 2023 Kyle Busch was looking for his first win in 18 starts on Lap 199 when Daniel Suarez spun out on the front straightaway. John Cherwaspecial Contributor, Los Angeles Times, 19 Feb. 2023 The empty grandstands flanking portions of the route will be teeming with spectators in a few days as the iconic thoroughfare transforms to the main straightaway for the Las Vegas Grand Prix. Viju Mathew, Robb Report, 12 Nov. 2023 By that time, though, The Super Mario Bros. Movie will be well north of $900+ million and on the straightaway toward the $1+ billion waiting at the finish line. Mark Hughes, Forbes, 20 Apr. 2023 Brown edged out Torrence in the final race of the U.S Nationals, racing the quarter-mile straightaway in 3.779 seconds at a speed of 328.54 mph. Chloe Peterson, The Indianapolis Star, 5 Sep. 2023 The track is flat on the straightaways, with gentle 9.2-degree banking in its four turns. Scott Horner, The Indianapolis Star, 24 Mar. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'straightaway.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

Adverb

1662, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

1874, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Noun

1878, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of straightaway was in 1662

Dictionary Entries Near straightaway

Cite this Entry

“Straightaway.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/straightaway. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

straightaway

1 of 3 adjective
straight·​away ˈstrāt-ə-ˌwā How to pronounce straightaway (audio)
1
: proceeding in a straight line : continuous in direction : straightforward
2
: immediate sense 4
made a straightaway reply

straightaway

2 of 3 noun
: the straight part of a racetrack : stretch

straightaway

3 of 3 adverb
straight·​away ˌstrāt-ə-ˈwā How to pronounce straightaway (audio)
: without delay : immediately
found an answer straightaway

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