avert
Americanverb (used with object)
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to turn away or aside.
to avert one's eyes.
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to ward off; prevent.
to avert evil;
to avert an accident.
verb
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to turn away or aside
to avert one's gaze
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to ward off; prevent from occurring
to avert danger
Other Word Forms
- avertable adjective
- averter noun
- avertible adjective
Etymology
Origin of avert
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Middle French avertir, ultimately derived from Latin āvertere, equivalent to ā- a- 4 + vertere “to turn”
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
I saw her swallow hard, and I averted my eyes as she swiped at hers with the back of her hand.
From Literature
The more demand drops at once, the more difficult it is for a grid operator to take enough supply offline to avert damage to power plants and other infrastructure.
The UN rights chief voiced alarm Friday at the deteriorating situation in South Sudan, calling for "urgent action" to avert a return to full-scale civil war.
From Barron's
Oil prices slipped after mediators said Iran and the United States made "significant progress" in nuclear talks Thursday as they look to avert a war in the crude-rich Middle East.
From Barron's
Iran and the United States held talks in Switzerland on Thursday, in a last-ditch bid to avert war under the shadow of the biggest American military build-up in the Middle East in decades.
From Barron's
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
