avoidance

/əˈvɔɪdɪns/

/əˈvɔɪdɪns/

Other forms: avoidances

The act of deliberately keeping yourself away from something is avoidance. Your avoidance of the outdoors this summer has left you very pale!

Some types of avoidance make a lot of sense, like the avoidance of horror movies by someone who's easily frightened. Others are less healthy, like your avoidance of doing homework, which inevitably leads to a panic when you realize it's all due tomorrow. In law, avoidance means "making something nullified or void," the way failing to fulfill certain obligations can result in avoidance of a signed contract.

Definitions of avoidance

1. noun

   the act of deliberately avoiding; keeping away from or preventing from happening
   synonyms: dodging, shunning, turning away

   types:

   aversion, averting

   the act of turning yourself (or your gaze) away

   escape

   an avoidance of danger or difficulty

   near thing

   something that barely avoids failure or disaster

   type of:

   rejection

   the act of rejecting something