An American woman is away (6)
I believe the answer is:
abroad
'is away' is the definition.
(I've seen this before)
'an american woman' is the wordplay.
'an' becomes 'a'.
'american woman' becomes 'broad'.
'a'+'broad'='ABROAD'
(Other definitions for abroad that I've seen before include "In foreign land" , "in France, say" , "Out of doors - in foreign parts" , "In another country, not at home" , "on the Continent" .)