unavoidable
Americanadjective
adjective
-
unable to be avoided; inevitable
-
law not capable of being declared null and void
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of unavoidable
1570–80; un- 1 + avoidable ( def. )
Explanation
Use the adjective unavoidable to describe something that you can't escape or avoid. Going to your family reunion is unavoidable if there's no way for you to get out of it. Obligations are unavoidable, since they are responsibilities that have to be honored. Letting your grandmother pinch your cheek is unavoidable, and paying your rent is also unavoidable. As you get older, it's unavoidable that your knees will get stiffer — there is no way to avoid having this happen. Unavoidable comes from the verb avoid, which is rooted in the Anglo-French avoider, "to clear out or withdraw oneself."
Vocabulary lists containing unavoidable
"Core Curriculum: Introductory Craft Skills," Vocabulary from Module Four
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Shut Up, This Is Serious
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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.
New BBC boss warns that 'tough choices are unavoidable'
From BBC ● Aug. 27, 2026
But Thailand is among a band of neighbouring nations, sharing unavoidable border issues with Myanmar, which have used the polls as a cue to reset relations.
From Barron's ● Aug. 20, 2026
Like skinny jeans, they eventually became unavoidable — and thus a bit stale, giving way to looser fits and bulkier “dad” sneakers.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 15, 2026
Popular culture has often depicted the dodo as clumsy and unintelligent, sometimes suggesting that its extinction was almost unavoidable.
From Science Daily ● Aug. 9, 2026
These irrational numbers were an unavoidable consequence of Greek mathematics.
From "Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea" by Charles Seife
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
