circumvention

American  

[sur-kuhm-ven-shuhn] / ˌsɜr kəmˈvɛn ʃən /

noun

1. the act of bypassing or going around something.

   Taking the northern route, to allow circumvention of the mountains, made the journey twice as long.

2. the act of avoiding, evading, or forestalling something, often by cleverness or deception.

   Thorough consultation before implementing an innovation allows for the circumvention of potential risks.

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Etymology

Origin of circumvention

First recorded in 1530–40; from Latin circumventiōn-, stem of circumventiō “a coming around, surrounding; oppression,” equivalent to circumvent ( def. ) + -ion ( def. )

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

circumvention

The Clippers’ offseason was engulfed by the NBA’s salary-cap circumvention investigation into the team’s endorsement deals with Kawhi Leonard.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 28, 2026

The punishments come after the NBA said its month-long investigation "found a pattern of misconduct and multiple significant rules violations by the Clippers organisation, a prior offender of the salary-cap circumvention rules".

From BBC ● Sep. 2, 2026

Yet most will only remember that Leonard’s tenure in the City of Angels netted zero Larry O’Brien trophies and instead plenty of load management and one ongoing salary cap circumvention investigation.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 30, 2026

The EU will also be on the lookout for circumvention, as well as any effort to reroute small parcels to the bloc via countries like Switzerland.

From Barron's ● Jun. 30, 2026

As a matter of fact, he almost always was, but she had found that directness was better than any amount of circumvention, and, though he could not be driven, he could just occasionally be led.

From Paddy-The-Next-Best-Thing by Gertrude Page