AVOID Synonyms: 131 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How does the verb 'avoid' contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of avoid are elude , escape , eschew , evade , and shun . While all these words mean "to get away or keep away from something," avoid stresses forethought and caution in keeping clear of danger or difficulty. // try to avoid past errors

Q: When might 'elude' be a better fit than 'avoid'?

While the synonyms elude and avoid are close in meaning, elude implies a slippery or baffling quality in the person or thing that escapes. // what she sees in him eludes me

Q: When is it sensible to use 'escape' instead of 'avoid'?

The words escape and avoid are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, escape stresses the fact of getting away or being passed by not necessarily through effort or by conscious intent. // nothing escapes her sharp eyes

Q: In what contexts can 'eschew' take the place of 'avoid'?

The words eschew and avoid can be used in similar contexts, but eschew implies an avoiding or abstaining from as unwise or distasteful. // a playwright who eschews melodrama

Q: When can 'evade' be used instead of 'avoid'?

In some situations, the words evade and avoid are roughly equivalent. However, evade implies adroitness, ingenuity, or lack of scruple in escaping or avoiding. // evaded the question by changing the subject

Q: Where would 'shun' be a reasonable alternative to 'avoid'?

While in some cases nearly identical to avoid , shun often implies an avoiding as a matter of habitual practice or policy and may imply repugnance or abhorrence. // you have shunned your responsibilities

avoid

verb

ə-ˈvȯid

Definition of avoid

as in to evade

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

Relevance

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

as in to abolish

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

Synonym Chooser

How does the verb avoid contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of avoid are elude, escape, eschew, evade, and shun. While all these words mean "to get away or keep away from something," avoid stresses forethought and caution in keeping clear of danger or difficulty.

try to avoid past errors

When might elude be a better fit than avoid?

While the synonyms elude and avoid are close in meaning, elude implies a slippery or baffling quality in the person or thing that escapes.

what she sees in him eludes me

When is it sensible to use escape instead of avoid?

The words escape and avoid are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, escape stresses the fact of getting away or being passed by not necessarily through effort or by conscious intent.

nothing escapes her sharp eyes

In what contexts can eschew take the place of avoid?

The words eschew and avoid can be used in similar contexts, but eschew implies an avoiding or abstaining from as unwise or distasteful.

a playwright who eschews melodrama

When can evade be used instead of avoid?

In some situations, the words evade and avoid are roughly equivalent. However, evade implies adroitness, ingenuity, or lack of scruple in escaping or avoiding.

evaded the question by changing the subject

Where would shun be a reasonable alternative to avoid?

While in some cases nearly identical to avoid, shun often implies an avoiding as a matter of habitual practice or policy and may imply repugnance or abhorrence.

you have shunned your responsibilities

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 avoid Netflix has mostly avoided large-scale layoffs in recent years (the last major round of cuts was 2022), though the company has made adjustments on specific teams over time. — Alex Weprin, HollywoodReporter, 14 Oct. 2026 The flags couldn’t be redder, and Khoshnoudi nimbly sketches out the circuitous emotional paths S takes to avoid seeing them until such evasion suddenly and brutally becomes impossible. — Sara Holdren, Vulture, 14 Oct. 2026 Those odds are still likely suppressed by the notion the Fed will avoid raising rates just before an election. — Fred Imbert, CNBC, 14 Oct. 2026 Both executives spoke anonymously to avoid revealing their tactics. — ABC News, 14 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for avoid

Recent Examples of Synonyms for avoid

Verb

The new Marvel series will see the hero grapple with his identity and humanity while evading a bounty hunter and reuniting with his son.

— Tracy Brown, Los Angeles Times, 14 Oct. 2026
Last year, a Houthi missile evaded Israel’s vaunted air defenses and impacted near Ben Gurion airport.

— Tim Lister, CNN Money, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of evade

Verb

In Germany, the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) is also gaining ground and wants to abolish the license fee that finances public broadcasters ARD and ZDF.

— Leo Barraclough, Variety, 15 Oct. 2026
Although California had technically abolished slavery in its 1849 constitution, no legal authority troubled Smith about his human property.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of abolish

Verb

As the comet rotates, fresh ice enters the sunlight and sublimates; the escaping gas then drags entrained dust particles away from the nucleus.

— Joe Rao, Space.com, 13 Oct. 2026
In July, two of OpenAI’s models escaped a testing environment and hacked the open-source AI platform Hugging Face.

— Marco Quiroz-Gutierrez, Fortune, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of escape

Verb

Classes, activities and athletic events across Bend-La Pine Schools are canceled tomorrow, the district announced.

— Phil Helsel, NBC news, 16 Oct. 2026
Ossoff last year also pressed Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin for canceling public health and environmental grants.

— Maydeen Merino, The Washington Examiner, 15 Oct. 2026

Definition of cancel

Verb

Anthropic contacted the task force to disclose the latest incident and has a history of reporting security episodes publicly and tweaking models to prevent more harm.

— Ashley Gold, semafor.com, 13 Oct. 2026
There are scores of websites, social-media groups, and YouTube channels dedicated to analyzing and documenting crashes, ostensibly with the goal of preventing future mishaps in flight.

— Sudarsan Raghavan, New Yorker, 12 Oct. 2026

Definition of prevent

Verb

On the first day of his second term, the Republican president repealed a Biden-era executive order aimed in part at guarding against the risks that AI systems pose to consumers, workers and national security.

— Garance Burke, Los Angeles Times, 12 Oct. 2026
Some in the Legislature have tried to repeal that tax credit in recent years.

— AJC.com, AJC.com, 12 Oct. 2026

Definition of repeal

Verb

The conversation also addressed AI, with Velazquez comparing current anxieties to earlier fears that computer animation and motion capture would eliminate traditional animation jobs.

— Davide Abbatescianni, Variety, 13 Oct. 2026
But in 2025, Congress eliminated that tax — and in early August, a federal judge in Texas ruled that without it, those other measures for extra vetting were unconstitutional, the Idaho Statesman reported at the time.

— Sarah Cutler, Idaho Statesman, 13 Oct. 2026

Definition of eliminate

Verb

This caused the boat to overturn, sending everyone into the water.

— David Goodhue October 12, Miami Herald, 12 Oct. 2026
The databases used to check citizenship against voter registration lists can be outdated, said Freda Levenson, legal director of the ACLU of Ohio, which has sued to overturn the law.

— Gary Fields, Los Angeles Times, 12 Oct. 2026

Definition of overturn

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avocations

avoid

avoidable

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“Avoid.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/avoid. Accessed 19 Oct. 2026.

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Synonyms of avoid

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