Avoid

Avoid
Avoid A*void", v. t. [imp. & p. p. {Avoided}; p. pr. & vb. n. {Avoiding}.] [OF. esvuidier, es (L. ex) + vuidier, voidier, to empty. See {Void}, a.] 1. To empty. [Obs.] --Wyclif. [1913 Webster]

2. To emit or throw out; to void; as, to avoid excretions. [Obs.] --Sir T. Browne. [1913 Webster]

3. To quit or evacuate; to withdraw from. [Obs.] [1913 Webster]

Six of us only stayed, and the rest avoided the room. --Bacon. [1913 Webster]

4. To make void; to annul or vacate; to refute. [1913 Webster]

How can these grants of the king's be avoided? --Spenser. [1913 Webster]

5. To keep away from; to keep clear of; to endeavor no to meet; to shun; to abstain from; as, to avoid the company of gamesters. [1913 Webster]

What need a man forestall his date of grief. And run to meet what he would most avoid ? --Milton. [1913 Webster]

He carefully avoided every act which could goad them into open hostility. --Macaulay. [1913 Webster]

6. To get rid of. [Obs.] --Shak. [1913 Webster]

7. (Pleading) To defeat or evade; to invalidate. Thus, in a replication, the plaintiff may deny the defendant's plea, or confess it, and avoid it by stating new matter. --Blackstone. [1913 Webster]

Syn: To escape; elude; evade; eschew.

Usage: To {Avoid}, {Shun}. Avoid in its commonest sense means, to keep clear of, an extension of the meaning, to withdraw one's self from. It denotes care taken not to come near or in contact; as, to avoid certain persons or places. Shun is a stronger term, implying more prominently the idea of intention. The words may, however, in many cases be interchanged. [1913 Webster]

No man can pray from his heart to be kept from temptation, if the take no care of himself to avoid it. --Mason. [1913 Webster]

So Chanticleer, who never saw a fox, Yet shunned him as a sailor shuns the rocks. --Dryden. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

Игры ⚽ Поможем сделать НИР
Synonyms:
(in a negative sense, or denoting care only without positive exertion), , , , , , , , , , / , , (after cannot)


Look at other dictionaries:

  • avoid — vt [modification of Old French esvuider to destroy, literally, to empty, from es out + vuider to empty] 1: to make void or undo: annul the trustee may avoid any transfer of interest of the debtor in property U.S. Code 2: to respond to (an… …   Law dictionary

  • avoid — a‧void [əˈvɔɪd] verb [transitive] TAX LAW if you avoid tax, you manage to not pay it legally, for example by the way that you enter profits or losses into your accounts: • Investing in this way allows savers to avoid tax upon withdrawal. compare… …   Financial and business terms

  • avoid — avoid; avoid·a·ble; un·avoid·abil·i·ty; avoid·ant; avoid·ance; avoid·a·bly; un·avoid·able·ness; …   English syllables

  • avoid — [ə void′] vt. [ME avoiden < Anglo Fr avoider < OFr esvuidier, to empty < es (< L ex ), out + vuidier: see VOID] 1. to make void; annul, invalidate, or quash (a plea, etc. in law) 2. to keep away from; evade; shun [to avoid crowds] 3.… …   English World dictionary

  • avoid — avoid, avert, evade Avoid and evade overlap in meaning, but evade has a stronger sense of guile or trickery in escaping from an obligation (such as paying income tax). Avert means ‘to turn aside’ (which is its literal meaning in averting one s… …   Modern English usage

  • Avoid — A*void , v. i. 1. To retire; to withdraw. [Obs.] [1913 Webster] David avoided out of his presence. 1 Sam. xviii. 11. [1913 Webster] 2. (Law) To become void or vacant. [Obs.] Ayliffe. [1913 Webster] …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • avoid — (v.) c.1300, from Anglo Fr. avoider to clear out, withdraw (oneself), partially anglicized from O.Fr. esvuidier to empty out, from es out (see EX (Cf. ex )) + vuidier to be empty, from voide empty, vast, wide, hollow, waste (see VOID (Cf …   Etymology dictionary

  • avoid — *escape, shun, eschew, evade, elude Analogous words: avert, ward, *prevent, obviate: forestall, anticipate (see PREVENT): flee, fly (see ESCAPE) Antonyms: face: meet Contrasted words: *incur, contract, catch: court, solicit, * …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • avoid — [v] refrain or stay away from; prevent abstain, avert, bypass, circumlocute, circumvent, deflect, desist, ditch, divert, dodge, duck, elude, escape, eschew, evade, fake out*, fend off, flee, give the slip*, hide, hold off, jump, keep clear, lay… …   New thesaurus

  • avoid — ► VERB 1) keep away or refrain from. 2) prevent from doing or happening. DERIVATIVES avoidable adjective avoidably adverb avoidance noun. ORIGIN Old French evuider clear out, get rid of …   English terms dictionary

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