Definition of CIRCUMVENT

The Circular History of Circumvent

If you’ve ever felt as if someone were circling around the rules, you have an idea of the origins of "circumvent" - it derives from the Latin circum, meaning "circle," and "ventus," the past participle of the Latin verb venire, meaning "to come." The earliest uses of "circumvent" referred to a tactic of hunting or warfare in which the quarry or enemy was encircled and captured. Today, however, "circumvent" more often suggests avoidance than entrapment; it typically means to "get around" someone or something, as in our example sentences.

Examples of circumvent in a Sentence

Los Angeles was the beachhead for the sushi invasion, attracting many Japanese chefs eager to make their fortunes and to circumvent the grueling 10-year apprenticeship required in their homeland. — Jay McInerney, New York Times Book Review, 10 June 2007 … Rondon and Lyra paddled to the right side, where they found a channel that circumvented the worst part of the rapids. — Candice Millard, The River of Doubt, 2005 His appreciation of this finer side of life is circumvented by a cynicism that he tells me is common to Eastern Europeans. — Lynne Tillman, Motion Sickness, 1991 The thirty-six-hour workweek established by the garment-industry code was circumvented by having the workers punch out at five P.M., leave by the back door (their usual entrance), then return by the front door and work until eleven P.M. without punching the clock. — Melissa Hield, Speaking For Ourselves, (1977) 1984 We circumvented the problem by using a different program. He found a way to circumvent the law.

Recent Examples on the Web

Building connection long-distance is a complex process, starting with trying to circumvent the Great Firewall of China, a safety net barring danger and dissent, but also possibility and perspective. — Shao Xinning, Seventeen, "This Teen Created Her Own Pen Pal Service in Order to Connect Girls Across China," 18 Mar. 2019 That means the course will circumvent the West Bank and east Jerusalem, territories Israel captured in the 1967 Mideast war and claimed by the Palestinians as parts of a future independent state. — Washington Post, "After political snag, Israel in gear to host Giro d’Italia," 30 Apr. 2018 Various cloud companies have tried to circumvent this issue by moving their data centers to the arctic, or spending an absurd amount of money on air conditioning. — Sophie Weiner, Popular Mechanics, "Dutch Company Experiments with Using Servers as Water Heaters," 2 June 2017 Newsletter Sign-up Some transport officials say shippers who circumvent dangerous-goods rules with false declarations should face criminal penalties. — Costas Paris, WSJ, "Ship Operators Raise Alarms Over String of Vessel Fires," 24 Mar. 2019 Because of their positions and privilege, many are able to circumvent the educational conditions facing many poor Black and Brown families. — Jenn M. Jackson, Teen Vogue, "Access to Education for Black Children Proves Difficult for Their Parents, Creating a Disadvantage," 13 Mar. 2019 Fantastic tales have been circulated of devices to circumvent the Prohibition forces. — Popular Mechanics Editors, Popular Mechanics, "Rewind: What Guarding Uncle Sam's Borders Was Like in 1925," 11 Feb. 2019 The village’s school was constructed out of tires and mud to circumvent restrictions. — Loveday Morris, Washington Post, "As Israeli bulldozers circle, a tiny village takes center stage in Palestinian struggle," 11 July 2018 To the dismay of civil liberties advocates, prosecutors have sometimes managed to circumvent statutes of limitations when DNA has been collected in a rape case but there is no match in the forensic DNA database. — Ruth Padawer, New York Times, "Should Statutes of Limitations for Rape Be Abolished?," 19 June 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'circumvent.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.