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What is the meaning of "Away off she saw something" in the following sentence (Source: Up and Away by paul McKee, M. Lucile Harrison, Annie McCowen, Elizabeth Lehr.),

On the way home, Dot and her daddy went along by the next farm. A little dog came running out. He ran along by the wagon.

"Look, Daddy!" cried Dot. "A little dog is running after us."

"I think he will soon stop running and go back to the house," said Daddy. "He must belong on that farm."

But the little black dog did not stop. She kept on looking back when he could not be seen at all. Still Dot kept on looking back. She kept on looking for a long time after she got out of the wagon.

"He got too far behind," she said. "I guess he went back," said Daddy. "He must belong on that farm."

Dot looked back again. Away off she saw something. It was just a little black dot!

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Does "Away off she saw something" mean " she that was away off saw something" or "she saw something that was away off" ?

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  • Without more context, this seems like an incorrect English sentence, or possibly vernacular.
    – Andrew
    Commented Apr 3, 2018 at 4:52
  • I have added more context.
    – user22046
    Commented Apr 3, 2018 at 5:06
  • I think it is a vernacular or regional use. Your second guess is correct; it means that what she saw was a distance away. It can't mean "she that was away off saw something" because we don't normally put adjectives in front of personal pronouns like "Far away she" or "tall he".
    – stangdon
    Commented Apr 3, 2018 at 10:55

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I've normally seen it written as "a way off":

Dot looked back again. A way off she saw something. It was just a little black dot!

In this case, "a way off" means a long distance away.

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  • I would add that this is American South / Midwest "country" vernacular.
    – Andrew
    Commented Apr 3, 2018 at 11:40

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