Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • noun Something designed or likely to be discarded after use, as a free handbill distributed on the street.
  • noun A child or teenager who has been rejected, ejected, or abandoned by parents or guardians and lives on the streets.
  • adjective Designed or intended to be discarded after use.
  • adjective Readily discarding things.
  • adjective Having been rejected, ejected, or abandoned by parents or guardians.
  • adjective Written or delivered in a low-key or offhand manner.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • noun an advertisement (usually printed on a page or in a leaflet) intended for wide distribution.
  • noun words spoken in a casual way with conscious underemphasis.
  • adjective designed to be discarded after a single use; disposable.
  • adjective spoken with deliberate underemphasis.
  • transitive verb to discard.
  • transitive verb to waste or squander.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • adjective Disposable; intended for a single use prior to being discarded.
  • adjective Extemporaneous; off the cuff.
  • adjective Being intended for single use.
  • adjective Selected or used without care or attention.

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb get rid of
  • verb throw or cast away
  • noun words spoken in a casual way with conscious under-emphasis
  • noun an advertisement (usually printed on a page or in a leaflet) intended for wide distribution
  • adjective intended to be thrown away after use
  • noun (sometimes offensive) a homeless boy who has been abandoned and roams the streets
  • adjective thrown away

Etymologies

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

throw +‎ away.

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Examples

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  • Most people won't be surprised to learn that they also seek to shape what is published in journals through ghost-written essays signed by prestigious doctors, or attempt to influence prescribers' opinions through widely distributed "throwaways", a euphemism for journal articles that support their products.

    New Scientist, 6 June 2009

    June 8, 2009