shun

¹ American  

[shuhn] / ʃʌn /

verb (used with object)

shunned, shunning

1. to keep away from (a place, person, object, etc.), from motives of dislike, caution, etc.; take pains to avoid.

   Synonyms:

   eschew, evade

   Antonyms:

   seek

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Shun ² American  

[shoon] / ʃun /

noun

Wade-Giles, Pinyin.

1. Yao1

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'shun ¹ British  

/ ʃʌn /

interjection

1. military a clipped form of attention

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shun ² British  

/ ʃʌn /

verb

1. (tr) to avoid deliberately; keep away from

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Other Word Forms

• shunnable adjective
• shunner noun
• unshunnable adjective

Etymology

Origin of shun

First recorded before 950; Middle English shunen, Old English scunian “to avoid, fear”

Example Sentences

Singh appeared uncomfortable with the fame that followed and shunned media attention, often skipping award ceremonies.

From BBC

—Bitcoin led a fall in cryptocurrencies as investors shunned risky assets on fears of military action in the Middle East while investors are weighing earnings from U.S. tech megacaps.

From The Wall Street Journal

The data suggests that young people, and increasing numbers of men in particular, are shunning booze.

From BBC

“This is kind of normal operating procedure. When people get very heady, there’s a speculative tone to the markets. People forget about dividends,” and shun them in the belief they can’t grow, he said.

From MarketWatch

In the Sahel more widely, Brennan said "we still collaborate" with the junta-led governments in Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger, which have broken away from their west African neighbours and largely shunned the West.

From Barron's

Related Words

• despise
• disdain
• eschew
• neglect
• pass up
• refuse
• reject
• scorn
• snub