Synonyms

evade

American

[ih-veyd] / ɪˈveɪd /

verb (used with object)

to escape from by trickery or cleverness.

to evade one's pursuers.

Synonyms:

dodge, avoid

Antonyms:

confront, face
to get around by trickery.

to evade rules.
to avoid doing or fulfilling.

to evade an obligation.
to avoid answering directly.

to evade a question.
to elude; escape.

The solution evaded him.

verb (used without object)

to avoid doing or fulfilling something.
to elude or get away from someone or something by craft or slyness; escape.

evade British

/ ɪˈveɪd /

verb

to get away from or avoid (imprisonment, captors, etc); escape
to get around, shirk, or dodge (the law, a duty, etc)
(also intr) to avoid answering (a question)

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Synonym Usage

See escape.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Conjugated Forms

Present

Past

Future

Etymology

Origin of evade

First recorded in 1505–15; from Latin ēvādere “to pass over, go out,” equivalent to ē- “out of, from” + vādere “to go, walk” see e- ¹

Explanation

When you evade something, you escape it. You could evade a police chase by slipping into a secret alley, or you could evade your mother's questions about the missing cookies by slipping into another topic. Other things people like to evade? Death. Taxes. Creepy ex-boyfriends. The verb evade comes from Latin roots ex ("away) and vadere ("to walk"), meaning literally "to walk away or to escape." Definitely what you want to do with creepy ex-boyfriends.

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Vocabulary lists containing evade

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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.

Siding with the federal government, a judge ruled on Friday that David Rush, 49, was a severe flight risk with the means and motive to evade detection, and must remain in jail until his trial.

From BBC • Jun. 5, 2026

According to the researchers, these findings raise the possibility of developing therapies that better harness CD4+ T cells, particularly against tumors that have learned to evade traditional CD8+ T cell attacks.

From Science Daily • Jun. 4, 2026

This solved two critical problems for Blanche: His boss gets to claim victory while the acting attorney general can legally evade judicial accountability.

From Slate • Jun. 4, 2026

But player Lee said she believed operators would find ways to evade any regulation enacted.

From Barron's • May 31, 2026

The Civil War, for example, was a direct consequence of the decision to evade and delay the slavery question during the most vulnerable early years of the republic.

From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023