1
as in circumvents
to avoid having to comply with (something) especially through cleverness
the eager enlistee sidestepped the regulations by lying about his age
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Recent Examples of sidesteps
Maynard effectively sidesteps the occasion for the profile — Judy’s new, bestselling, sexy adult novel — to offer an evaluation of her outsize role in youth culture.
—
Mark Oppenheimer, Vulture, 25 Feb. 2026
Capturing and feeding this CO₂ to microbes sidesteps the significant energy penalty of diluting it with air while also removing pollutants.
—Srishti Gupta, Interesting Engineering, 16 Feb. 2026
At the time, the company was trying to break into the lottery ticket courier business, which sidesteps state laws prohibiting online gaming by taking lottery orders via a phone app, and then dispatching a courier to purchase tickets in-person at licensed retailers.
—Eric Dexheimer, Houston Chronicle, 30 Jan. 2026
The process sidesteps the need for most users to provide identifiable information like a driver’s license, one of the main criticisms of age verification technologies due to privacy and security risks.
—Rachyl Jones, semafor.com, 21 Jan. 2026
The celebration of global digital access conveniently sidesteps the question of Americans who may be left behind in this streaming future.
—Clayton Davis, Variety, 19 Dec. 2025
This eliminates extra weight and power consumption, helps keep costs down, and sidesteps the privacy concerns that proved to be one of the main sticking points for Google Glass.
—IEEE Spectrum, 13 Nov. 2025
Built around those calls — punctuated by Hassona’s own images — the film sidesteps the usual remove of war docs for something rawer and more intimate, the kind of testimony that has sparked emotional audience responses since Cannes and subsequent European outings.
—Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 7 Nov. 2025
His company, Echo, sidesteps the problem, using not a chip with probes, but a thin film that sits on the brain without penetrating it.
—Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 6 Nov. 2025
Mark Oppenheimer, Vulture, 25 Feb. 2026
Capturing and feeding this CO₂ to microbes sidesteps the significant energy penalty of diluting it with air while also removing pollutants.
—Srishti Gupta, Interesting Engineering, 16 Feb. 2026
At the time, the company was trying to break into the lottery ticket courier business, which sidesteps state laws prohibiting online gaming by taking lottery orders via a phone app, and then dispatching a courier to purchase tickets in-person at licensed retailers.
—Eric Dexheimer, Houston Chronicle, 30 Jan. 2026
The process sidesteps the need for most users to provide identifiable information like a driver’s license, one of the main criticisms of age verification technologies due to privacy and security risks.
—Rachyl Jones, semafor.com, 21 Jan. 2026
The celebration of global digital access conveniently sidesteps the question of Americans who may be left behind in this streaming future.
—Clayton Davis, Variety, 19 Dec. 2025
This eliminates extra weight and power consumption, helps keep costs down, and sidesteps the privacy concerns that proved to be one of the main sticking points for Google Glass.
—IEEE Spectrum, 13 Nov. 2025
Built around those calls — punctuated by Hassona’s own images — the film sidesteps the usual remove of war docs for something rawer and more intimate, the kind of testimony that has sparked emotional audience responses since Cannes and subsequent European outings.
—Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 7 Nov. 2025
His company, Echo, sidesteps the problem, using not a chip with probes, but a thin film that sits on the brain without penetrating it.
—Jeffrey Kluger, Time, 6 Nov. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sidesteps
Verb
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Many of the mistakes or inconsistencies that happen in garment manufacturing stem from human error, which CreateMe circumvents.—
Sarah Jones,
Sourcing Journal,
19 Feb. 2026
-
Moscow is at the mercy of an American president who circumvents traditional channels of power and obliterates the constraints that once regulated their use.—
Alan Cullison,
The Atlantic,
13 Feb. 2026
Verb
-
As the play weaves through time, the focuses on the actions done for the benefit of Joe’s family, and his wife Kate’s moral compass, creating brutal conflicts.—
David John Chávez,
Mercury News,
24 Feb. 2026
-
The eight-part show written by Pickett from Drama Republic (Riot Women, One Day) is set in the heart of Tudor England against the backdrop of Anne Boleyn’s arrest and weaves royal scandal with rural struggle.—
Lily Ford,
HollywoodReporter,
23 Feb. 2026
Verb
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The route map, for instance, avoids the shuttered Alliance Bank Center.—
Frederick Melo,
Twin Cities,
26 Feb. 2026
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That avoids lease financing costs while still taking advantage of the remaining federal tax credit, assuming companies pass the savings onto the customer.—
Jeff Brady,
NPR,
25 Feb. 2026
Verb
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In his description of the Gettys, Newsom reminds me of Tom Wambsgans, of HBO’s Succession, who marries into the powerful Roy family and only narrowly dodges being made the fall guy for a corporate scandal, because a son-in-law is not as important as a son.—
Helen Lewis,
The Atlantic,
24 Feb. 2026
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In a cult classic 1976 film, The Bill Koch Experience, the star slaloms at perilous speed through low brush, dodges cows in a pasture, and also leaps off a boulder, only to tumble.—
Bill Donahue,
Outside,
14 Feb. 2026
Verb
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An all-cash purchase avoids scrutiny from financial institutions and evades mandatory reporting.—
Virginia Hammerle,
Dallas Morning News,
22 Feb. 2026
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Experts who spoke to Flow Space are hopeful that these new approvals will provide the necessary tools to treat a disease that evades treatment by constantly mutating.—
Helen Carefoot,
Flow Space,
16 Dec. 2025
Verb
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In the video, the subject ducks his head in the opposite direction of the doorbell camera.—
Michael Ruiz , Adam Sabes , Christina Dugan Ramirez , Sarah Rumpf-Whitten , Julia Bonavita , Peter D'Abrosca , Alexandra Koch , Stepheny Price,
FOXNews.com,
3 Feb. 2026
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The sun ducks down and sets Conejo Mountain against warm pinks and purples, transforming the ridgeline into an epic silhouette.—
Brian Hamilton,
New York Times,
17 Oct. 2025
Verb
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Critics argue the White House policy amounts to selective immigration that bypasses refugees fleeing far more acute humanitarian crises elsewhere.—
Adrian Elimian,
semafor.com,
27 Feb. 2026
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In this near-field regime, the light bypasses the diffraction limit and probes nanoscale features.—
Aamir Khollam,
Interesting Engineering,
4 Feb. 2026
Verb
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Still, the disagreements in the region have been hard to ignores.—
Jacqueline Charles,
Miami Herald,
28 Feb. 2026
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Connecticut currently regulates licensed cannabis with a level of intensity that ignores relative risk.—
Rino Ferrarese,
Hartford Courant,
27 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Sidesteps.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sidesteps. Accessed 4 Mar. 2026.
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