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avoid
/əˈvɔɪd/
to stay away from
She tries to avoid eating junk food.
She makes an effort not to eat unhealthy snacks.
general
to keep away from someone or something
He avoids crowded places during flu season.
He stays away from busy areas when there are many sick people.
To avoid mistakes, double-check your work.
To prevent errors, review your work carefully.
Often used with 'to' or 'ing' form of a verb.
Collocations
avoid doing somethingto not do a specific actionavoid someoneto stay away from a person
Pro Tip
Common Usage
Use 'avoid' when you want to express staying away from something intentionally.
Word Origin
From Middle English 'avoiden', from Old French 'avoider', from 'a-' (to) + 'voider' (to empty).
Usage Notes
Can be used both literally and figuratively. Often followed by 'to' or 'ing' form.
Word Breakdown
a-
to
prefix-void
empty
rootEnglish Dictionary