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evade

/ɪˈveɪd/  ·  say it: ih·VAYD

to escape or avoid cleverly

In Actions & Behavior

In more detail

1. (verb) to escape or avoid something, especially by being clever or tricky

2. (verb) to avoid answering a question directly

Examples

• 1. The suspect managed to evade the police for several weeks.
• 2. The politician evaded the reporter's question about corruption.

How to use evade

Evade suggests deliberately using cunning or deception to escape something, often implying wrongdoing or legal/moral evasion. It carries a more deliberate, strategic tone than the neutral 'avoid,' and is frequently used in legal, financial, and conversational contexts to describe skirting rules, questions, or obligations.

Common phrases

• evade arrest
• evade taxes
• evade a direct answer
• evade responsibility
• evade the issue

Synonyms

avoid · escape · dodge · elude · sidestep

Opposites

confront · face · address

Word family

evasion · evasive · evader

A common mistake

Learners sometimes confuse 'evade' with 'avoid': evade implies active deception or trickery, while avoid is morally neutral and can mean simply staying away from something.

Nearby in Actions & Behavior

overcome, surmount, tackle, elude, circumvent, confront

Keep going

How to remember the words you read · Spaced repetition, explained