evade

verb \ i-ˈvād , ē- \

Updated on: 12 Apr 2018

Definition of evade

evaded; evading

intransitive verb

1 : to slip away

2 : to take refuge in escape or avoidance

transitive verb

1 : to elude by dexterity or stratagem

2 a : to avoid facing up to

evaded the real issues

b : to avoid the performance of : dodge, circumvent; especially : to fail to pay (taxes)

c : to avoid answering directly : turn aside

3 : to be elusive to : baffle

the simple, personal meaning evaded them
—C. D. Lewis

—

evadable

play \i-ˈvā-də-bəl. ē-\ adjective

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evader

noun

See evade defined for English-language learners

See evade defined for kids

Examples of evade in a Sentence

The criminals have so far managed to evade the police.
a politician skilled at evading difficult questions
The governor has been accused of evading the issue.

Recent Examples of evade from the Web

Based on Icebrg's research and firsthand experience, Peteroy sees the group's focus on evading antivirus scans as one of its biggest assets.

— lily hay newman, WIRED, "The Billion-Dollar Hacking Group Behind a String of Big Breaches," 4 Apr. 2018
Remember, this is how the 9/11 hijackers evaded detection — no one saw that all the little pieces actually formed a suspicious pattern.

— San Francisco Chronicle, "Mass shootings — the real issue is mental health," 4 Apr. 2018
The spots were already present in 1922, when Howard Carter made his discovery in Egypt's Valley of the Kings, after the tomb had evaded plunder for more than 3,000 years thanks to a flood that buried the entrance with debris.

— jessica gelt, latimes.com, "King Tut gets a remodel: How conservators are trying to protect the tomb from tourists," 28 Mar. 2018
Knoll had evaded the Vel' d'Hiv Roundup, which was ordered by Nazi occupiers in 1942 and resulted in the mass arrest of 13,000 French Jews, according to French lawmaker Meyer Habib, Reuters reported.

— antoine crouin and yelena peigne, CNN, "Thousands rally in Paris to protest slaying of Holocaust survivor," 28 Mar. 2018
The Tsilhqot'in people – one of Canada's aboriginal First Nations, pronounced Chilcotin – evaded capture by the vengeful British colonists for months, until one day the gift arrived with an offer of talks.

— author: meagan flynn, Anchorage Daily News, "Canada apologizes for brutal hanging of B.C. tribal chiefs 150 years ago," 27 Mar. 2018
Then the last episode finally cycled back to the July 15, 1997 death of Versace, after which Cunanan evaded police capture for a few days until he was discovered and ultimately killed himself.

— kelly lawler, USA TODAY, "Why the 'Versace' season of 'American Crime Story' never caught on like 'O.J.'," 22 Mar. 2018
In search of the engram The physical trace of a single memory—also called an engram—has long evaded capture.

— helen shen, Scientific American, "Portrait of a Memory," 14 Mar. 2018
That Thomas’ values apparently included perjury and harassment of women apparently evaded the Georgetown law professor.

— anne branigin, The Root, "Trump, the Walking Internet Comments Section, Taps Racist Blogger for Federal Job," 3 Mar. 2018

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

Origin and Etymology of evade

Middle French & Latin; Middle French evader, from Latin evadere, from e- + vadere to go, walk — more at wade

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1513

in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

See Words from the same year

evade Synonyms

Phrases

fight shy of, keep clear of, stay clear of, steer clear of;

Synonym Discussion of evade

escape, avoid, evade, elude, shun, eschew mean to get away or keep away from something. escape stresses the fact of getting away or being passed by not necessarily through effort or by conscious intent.

- nothing escapes her sharp eyes

avoid stresses forethought and caution in keeping clear of danger or difficulty.

- try to avoid past errors

evade implies adroitness, ingenuity, or lack of scruple in escaping or avoiding.

- evaded the question by changing the subject

elude implies a slippery or baffling quality in the person or thing that escapes.

- what she sees in him eludes me

shun often implies an avoiding as a matter of habitual practice or policy and may imply repugnance or abhorrence.

- you have shunned your responsibilities

eschew implies an avoiding or abstaining from as unwise or distasteful.

- a playwright who eschews melodrama

EVADE Defined for English Language Learners

evade

verb

Definition of evade for English Language Learners

: to stay away from (someone or something) : to avoid (someone or something)
: to avoid dealing with or facing (something)
: to avoid doing (something required)

EVADE Defined for Kids

evade

verb \ i-ˈvād \

Definition of evade for Students

evaded; evading

: to get away from or avoid meeting directly

evade a question

Law Dictionary

evade

transitive verb \ i-ˈvād \

legal Definition of evade

evaded; evading

1 : to unlawfully fail to pay (taxes) through fraudulent or deceptive means — compare avoid

2 : to avoid answering directly

trying to evade the question

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Definition of evade

evadable

evader

Examples of evade in a Sentence

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Origin and Etymology of evade

evade Synonyms

Synonyms

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EVADE Defined for English Language Learners

evade

Definition of evade for English Language Learners

EVADE Defined for Kids

evade

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evade

legal Definition of evade

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