avoids

verb

present tense third-person singular of avoid
1
as in evades
to get or keep away from (as a responsibility) through cleverness or trickery trying to avoid writing thank-you notes for the gifts he didn't like

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in abolishes
to put an end to by formal action asked the court to avoid the contract because it was signed under duress

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of avoids Keser Clinic avoids mega-sessions, preferring to split large cases across multiple days rather than attempting very high graft counts in a single sitting. — Burak Onal, Sacbee.com, 10 Nov. 2026 Closing the tax code’s carveouts to special interests would help, but there is no path to sustainability that avoids cutting (or slowing the growth of) benefits, raising eligibility ages to reflect longer lives and putting Medicare on a budget. — Veronique De Rugy, Oc Register, 7 Nov. 2026 As each unit rotates or pivots, the collective form avoids sudden snapping or breaking during bending. — New Atlas, 7 Nov. 2026 That way, her work ethic and generosity stay sweet and meaningful (when overexposure could easily turn them sour) and the show’s overall tone avoids becoming rote. — Ben Travers, IndieWire, 5 Nov. 2026 Negotiations could determine whether Washington avoids gridlock. — Justine McDaniel, Los Angeles Times, 4 Nov. 2026 Grand hotels can often feel daunting with small children in tow, but Badrutt confidently avoids that trap. — Fergus Scholes, TheWeek, 3 Nov. 2026 Storing these propellants in their gaseous forms retains them in a less dense form but avoids the complexity of storage at cryogenic temperatures. — Eric Berger, ArsTechnica, 3 Nov. 2026 Spreading the party around encourages mingling, provides more seating, and avoids tight areas from becoming crowded. — Maria Sabella, Better Homes & Gardens, 2 Nov. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for avoids
  1. evades
  2. abolishes
  3. escapes
  4. cancels
  5. prevents
  6. repeals
  7. eliminates
  8. dodges
Verb
  • Neither of those interpretations would be entirely invalid, exactly, and yet The Basics of Philosophy — ironically enough, given its title — mostly evades any such moral didacticism.
    — Richard Lawson, HollywoodReporter, 4 Sep. 2026
  • Journalists and negotiators follow up when someone evades the point.
    — Harvard Business Review, Harvard Business Review, 2 Sep. 2026
Definition of evades
Verb
  • The Schengen Area is an agreement between 29 European countries that abolishes passport controls and allows people to travel across European borders without providing documents.
    — Robert McGreevy, FOXNews.com, 1 Aug. 2026
  • Attorney Monica Restanio, whose arguments in court for the Venezuelan family were responsible for winning the ruling that abolishes the minor issue, said she was thrilled.
    — Julia Buckley, CNN Money, 29 July 2026
Definition of abolishes
Verb
  • As the Max Planck Institute for Plasma Physics explains, energy confinement time describes how quickly thermal energy escapes from the plasma, rather than how long an experiment runs.
    — Atharva Gosavi, Interesting Engineering, 31 Oct. 2026
  • The host enters the water, where the worm escapes from its body and begins the next stage of its life cycle.
    — Tara Deans, The Conversation, 30 Oct. 2026
Definition of escapes
Verb
  • One priority may be pressing the Education Department to fix the popular Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, which cancels the remaining federal student debt of eligible government and nonprofit workers after a decade.
    — Greg Iacurci,Annie Nova,Kate Dore, CFP®, EA,Sarah Agostino,Mike Winters, CNBC, 4 Nov. 2026
  • Flock Safety is continuing to disregard whether a city cancels a contract or the police chief disables the company’s cameras.
    — Joel Feder, The Drive, 4 Nov. 2026
Definition of cancels
Verb
  • Hemphill says doing the main pruning in spring prevents winter damage to tender young shoots and gives them a clean start for the new season.
    — The Spruce, The Spruce, 8 Nov. 2026
  • If the state offers a public benefit to everyone but someone’s religious belief prevents them from being able to obtain that public benefit (in this case, 15 hours of funding for each student), must the state bend to accommodate that belief?
    — Megan Schrader, Denver Post, 7 Nov. 2026
Definition of prevents
Verb
  • Proposition 4 repeals California’s ban on the use of public funds to finance political campaigns.
    — Kiara Adams, Sacbee.com, 3 Nov. 2026
  • Florida’s next governor will have the final say over whether the state repeals the law, along with a litany of other gun issues.
    — Romy Ellenbogen Herald, Miami Herald, 29 Sep. 2026
Definition of repeals
Verb
  • City voters also approved Question H, which creates a new department that handles all water and wastewater, and Question E, which eliminates the requirement that city contracts go to the lowest bidder.
    — Mike Hellgren, CBS News, 4 Nov. 2026
  • The pending closure of the four Westside child-care centers eliminates more than 450 licensed spots for young children, according to California records.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 29 Oct. 2026
Definition of eliminates
Verb
  • Baksheng leaves behind a family and then creates a new one with other Teochew emigrants at an inn run by a feminist daughter, Zia Lamgi (Li Sitong) who dodges a revolving door of suitors.
    — Randy Myers, Mercury News, 3 Sep. 2026
  • West Orange dodges a huge bullet as Hoban’s John Johnson drops a wide open pass that would’ve been an 80 yard touchdown.
    — Buddy Collings, The Orlando Sentinel, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of dodges

Browse Nearby Words

avoiding
avoids
avoirdupois
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Cite this Entry

“Avoids.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/avoids. Accessed 12 Nov. 2026.

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