avoided

verb

past tense of avoid
1
as in evaded
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 abolished
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 avoided Alabama avoided its first three-game losing streak since 2007 by beating Texas A&M and returned to the top 10. — ABC News, 25 Oct. 2026 Nuggets fans have hoped Denver would have avoided an 0-2 start to the season after dropping the first game of the year to the Oklahoma City Thunder. — Ryan Gaydos Outkick, FOXNews.com, 25 Oct. 2026 These were expensive and life-changing burdens, even for those who avoided trial and conviction. — Barton Gellman, New Yorker, 25 Oct. 2026 Defending national champion Indiana (7-1, 4-1 Big Ten) avoided losing two in a row for the first time in three years with coach Curt Cignetti — and won at the Big House for the first time since 1967. — Los Angeles Times, 24 Oct. 2026 France avoided a credit downgrade from Moody’s, but the ratings agency painted a bleak picture of the eurozone’s second-largest economy that highlighted the risks from its intractable politics. — Jason Ma, Fortune, 24 Oct. 2026 While the tech market has thus far avoided a dramatic across-the-board sell-off, the artificial intelligence build-out is showing signs of strain. — Isabel O'Brien, CNBC, 23 Oct. 2026 In other words, while the compliance department pays for the risk assessment and for appropriate actions to be taken, procurement benefits from a more resilient supplier base, the legal department benefits when litigation is avoided. — Ben Vanpeperstraete, Footwear News, 23 Oct. 2026 Our weak college presidents have avoided telling the truth for too long. — Bruce Svare, Sportico.com, 17 Oct. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for avoided
  1. evaded
  2. abolished
  3. escaped
  4. repealed
  5. prevented
  6. canceled
  7. dodged
  8. overturned
Verb
  • During this time, the streamer consistently ended up with best picture nominations, but top awards have notoriously evaded Netflix films.
    — Mia Galuppo, HollywoodReporter, 19 Oct. 2026
  • But the Hurricanes passer evaded FSU defenders on a key play early in the second quarter, escaping two would-be tacklers and throwing downfield to a wide-open Daylyn Upshaw for a 44-yard gain.
    — Adam Lichtenstein, Sun Sentinel, 18 Oct. 2026
Definition of evaded
Verb
  • Turkey abolished the Rumi calendar, which was pinned to the year 1341, and instantly woke up in the Western Gregorian year of 1926.
    — Maureen O'Hare, CNN Money, 17 Oct. 2026
  • Even if the position is abolished, the person elected this November would serve in the office through the end of 2027.
    — Isaac Yu, Houston Chronicle, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of abolished
Verb
  • Concerns mounted in July, when OpenAI disclosed that two of its models escaped containment, accessed the open internet and breached a company called Hugging Face.
    — Ashley Capoot, CNBC, 23 Oct. 2026
  • So far, these productions have largely escaped disruption, but the riots have rattled film crews and prompted warnings from Hollywood studios’ security departments.
    — Elsa Keslassy, Variety, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of escaped
Verb
  • The Greenwich Sentinel reported that at a recent forum, Democrat Jill Oberlander, candidate for the town’s 36th Senate District seat, said that the law should be amended or repealed, and stressed her support for community zoning authority.
    — Don Stacom, Hartford Courant, 18 Oct. 2026
  • It was deemed Biden’s signature climate law, providing hundreds of billions of dollars for tax credits and programs to bolster the clean energy sector (much of that funding was repealed by the 2025 One Big Beautiful Bill Act).
    — Maydeen Merino, The Washington Examiner, 15 Oct. 2026
Definition of repealed
Verb
  • The needs of Taiz's more than 1 million residents are now barely being met, humanitarian groups say, as access to wells is limited, desalination plants run low on fuel and water delivery trucks are largely prevented from entering the city.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 24 Oct. 2026
  • The win also prevented Indiana from suffering its first two-game losing streak in three years under coach Curt Cignetti and marked the Hoosiers’ first victory at Michigan Stadium since 1967.
    — Chantz Martin OutKick, FOXNews.com, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of prevented
Verb
  • Trump canceled trade talks with Canada after the ad aired during the World Series in October 2025.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 24 Oct. 2026
  • While the match is scheduled to go ahead, a Steelers fan event in Paris was cancelled by the NFL.
    — Ivana Kottasová, CNN Money, 23 Oct. 2026
Definition of canceled
Verb
  • Take a Fall Hike Galena sits on the southern edge of the Driftless Area, where rivers and rocky bluffs dodged the flattening force of glaciers long ago.
    — Julia Sayers Gokhale, Midwest Living, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Oregon’s Lanning compares UCLA to national champs Oregon coach Dan Lanning dodged questions this past week about the health of quarterback Dante Moore following a brutal hit during a win over USC by trying to focus on UCLA.
    — Marisa Ingemi, Los Angeles Times, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of dodged
Verb
  • The Florida Supreme Court later overturned the conviction due to a conflict of interest with the prosecutor and ordered a new trial.
    — Landon Mion, FOXNews.com, 21 Oct. 2026
  • American norms about politics, science, education and law are being overturned, and artificial intelligence threatens further disruption.
    — Maia Szalavitz, Scientific American, 20 Oct. 2026
Definition of overturned

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avoided
avoiding
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Cite this Entry

“Avoided.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/avoided. Accessed 27 Oct. 2026.

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