shoo away

phrasal verb·1 sense·particle away

Usefulness

Meanings

1

Drive away with gestures or noise

Why “away”? A broom sweeps aside. Unwanted items are pushed out of the scene.

She shooed the cat away from the table.
She drove the cat away from the table with gestures and sounds.
The farmer shooed the birds away from the seeds.
The farmer made the birds leave the seeds with noise and gestures.

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She shooed the cat away from the table. What does it mean?

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