stave off
verb
staved off; staving off; staves off
1
: to fend off
staving off creditors
2
: to ward off (something adverse) : forestall
trying to stave off disaster
Examples of stave off in a Sentence
managed to stave off the invaders
the quartermaster staved off a shortage by requisitioning more than enough supplies
Recent Examples on the Web
In 2021, legislation passed by the Biden administration to stave off the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic increased the subsidy that people could receive.
—
Robert Applebaum, The Conversation, 19 Dec. 2025
Climate scientists agree that limiting global warming is critical to staving off the snow-to-rain trend.
—Mead Gruver, Fortune, 19 Dec. 2025
Researchers estimate that, to stave off measles outbreaks, about 92 to 94 percent of people in a community must be immune to the virus.
—Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 18 Dec. 2025
And maybe, those eight seconds were the difference between the Leafs’ season going off the rails and their stars staving off another potentially damaging losing streak.
—Joshua Kloke, New York Times, 17 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for stave off
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Robert Applebaum, The Conversation, 19 Dec. 2025
Climate scientists agree that limiting global warming is critical to staving off the snow-to-rain trend.
—Mead Gruver, Fortune, 19 Dec. 2025
Researchers estimate that, to stave off measles outbreaks, about 92 to 94 percent of people in a community must be immune to the virus.
—Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 18 Dec. 2025
And maybe, those eight seconds were the difference between the Leafs’ season going off the rails and their stars staving off another potentially damaging losing streak.
—Joshua Kloke, New York Times, 17 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for stave off
Cite this Entry
“Stave off.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stave%20off. Accessed 21 Dec. 2025.
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