obviate

verb

ob·vi·ate ˈäb-vē-ˌāt

obviated; obviating

Synonyms of obviate next

transitive verb

: to anticipate and prevent (something, such as a situation) or make (an action) unnecessary

The new medical treatment obviates the need for surgery.

obviation

ˌäb-vē-ˈā-shən

noun

Did you know?

Obviate derives from the Late Latin obviare (meaning "to meet or withstand") and the Latin obviam (meaning "in the way") and is also an ancestor of our adjective obvious. Obviate has a number of synonyms in English, including prevent, preclude, and avert; all of these words can mean "to hinder or stop something." When you prevent or preclude something, you put up an insurmountable obstacle. In addition, preclude often implies that a degree of chance was involved in stopping an event. Obviate generally suggests the use of intelligence or forethought to ward off trouble. Avert always implies that a bad situation has been anticipated and prevented or deflected by the application of immediate and effective means.

Examples of obviate in a Sentence

The new medical treatment obviates the need for surgery. The new treatment obviates many of the risks associated with surgery.

Recent Examples on the Web If Boyfriend and Girlfriend marry instead of cohabiting gifts between them, assuming that the are both US citizens are of no import as the unlimited gift tax marital deduction would obviate any gift tax issues. —

Martin Shenkman, Forbes, 13 Aug. 2023 More importantly for financial markets, investors also took comments by the Fed's chair to mean that recent jumps in longer-term Treasury yields were acting like rate-increase substitutes and could obviate the need for more increases by the Fed. —

Stan Choe The Associated Press, Arkansas Online, 3 Nov. 2023 The technique would obviate the need to cut large slabs of metal into the product’s shape. —

Mark Gurman, Fortune, 31 Aug. 2023 At some point, even the most understanding fellow patron will wonder if forgoing the third drink purchase might have also obviated the necessity for the third bathroom stop. —

Miss Manners | Judith Martin, Anchorage Daily News, 31 Aug. 2023 The Senate on Wednesday rejected an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act that would have clarified that Article 5 of the NATO treaty does not obviate the need for Congress to declare war. —

W. James Antle Iii, Washington Examiner, 19 July 2023 And in 2025, Rivian will begin to manufacture its R1T trucks and R1S SUVs with Tesla’s charging port, obviating the need for an adapter. —

Andrew J. Hawkins, The Verge, 20 June 2023 Districts nationwide have begun adopting reforms that obviate the need to address-share: open enrollment policies, for example, and policies allowing a certain percentage of seats to go to out-of-district kids. —

Alia Wong, USA TODAY, 8 Aug. 2023 And in 2025, Mercedes will begin to manufacture EVs with Tesla’s charging port, obviating the need for an adapter. —

Andrew J. Hawkins, The Verge, 7 July 2023 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'obviate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.