bypass

American  

[bahy-pas, -pahs] / ˈbaɪˌpæs, -ˌpɑs /

Or by-pass

noun

1. a road enabling motorists to avoid a city or other heavy traffic points or to drive around an obstruction.

2. a secondary pipe or other channel connected with a main passage, as for conducting a liquid or gas around a fixture, pipe, or appliance.

3. Electricity. shunt.

4. a surgical procedure in which a diseased or obstructed hollow organ is temporarily or permanently circumvented.

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verb (used with object)

bypassed, bypast, bypassed, bypast, bypassing

1. to avoid (an obstruction, city, etc.) by following a bypass.

2. to cause (fluid or gas) to follow a secondary pipe or bypass.

3. to neglect to consult or to ignore the opinion or decision of.

   He bypassed the foreman and took his grievance straight to the owner.

bypass British  

/ ˈbaɪˌpɑːs /

noun

1. a main road built to avoid a city or other congested area

2. any system of pipes or conduits for redirecting the flow of a liquid

3. a means of redirecting the flow of a substance around an appliance through which it would otherwise pass

4. surgery

   1. the redirection of blood flow, either to avoid a diseased blood vessel or in order to perform heart surgery See coronary bypass

   2. ( as modifier )

      bypass surgery

5. electronics

   1. an electrical circuit, esp one containing a capacitor, connected in parallel around one or more components, providing an alternative path for certain frequencies

   2. ( as modifier )

      a bypass capacitor

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verb

1. to go around or avoid (a city, obstruction, problem, etc)

2. to cause (traffic, fluid, etc) to go through a bypass

3. to proceed without reference to (regulations, a superior, etc); get round; avoid

bypass Scientific  

/ bī′păs′ /

1. A passage created surgically to divert the flow of blood or other bodily fluid or to circumvent an obstructed or diseased organ.

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Other Word Forms

• by-passer noun
• bypasser noun

Etymology

Origin of bypass

1840–50; apparently back formation from by-passage; by (adj.), passage ¹

Example Sentences

Two small tunnels were inaugurated on January 26 after many delays, to access Cortina from the plains by bypassing villages.

From Barron's

He used that money to buy a house and took other family assets, bypassing your father’s wishes.

From MarketWatch

"In practice, this means some young people under 16 may be able to bypass protections, potentially leaving them with reduced safeguards, while others over 16 may incorrectly lose access."

From Barron's

"We should be able to bypass this lock in seconds, no damage whatsoever," Morgan said.

From BBC

Iran's naval crews have focussed much of their training on unconventional or "asymmetric" warfare, looking at ways to overcome or bypass the technical advantages enjoyed by their primary adversary, the US Navy's Fifth Fleet.

From BBC

Related Words

• circumvent
• ignore
• neglect
• omit
• sidestep
• skirt