evasion

American  

[ih-vey-zhuhn] / ɪˈveɪ ʒən /

noun

1. an act or instance of escaping, avoiding, or shirking something.

   evasion of one's duty.

   Synonyms:

   avoidance

2. the avoiding of an argument, accusation, question, or the like, as by a subterfuge.

   The old political boss was notorious for his practice of evasion.

   Synonyms:

   quibbling, equivocation, prevarication

3. a means of evading; subterfuge; an excuse or trick to avoid or get around something.

   Her polite agreement was an evasion concealing what she really felt.

4. physical or mental escape.

5. an act or instance of violating the tax laws by failing or refusing to pay all or part of one's taxes.

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evasion British  

/ ɪˈveɪʒən /

noun

1. the act of evading or escaping, esp from a distasteful duty, responsibility, etc, by trickery, cunning, or illegal means

   tax evasion

2. trickery, cunning, or deception used to dodge a question, duty, etc; means of evading

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Other Word Forms

• evasional adjective
• nonevasion noun
• preevasion noun
• reevasion noun

Etymology

Origin of evasion

1375–1425; late Middle English < Latin ēvāsiōn- (stem of ēvāsiō ), equivalent to ēvās ( us ) (past participle of ēvādere to go out; evade ) + -iōn- -ion

Example Sentences

With large unpaid sums at stake, tax evasion counts as a felony that can lead to prison time.

From MarketWatch • Apr. 6, 2026

The Tax Foundation, a nonpartisan nonprofit, anticipated a higher rate of evasion on this tax, leading to a revenue gain of $3.3 trillion.

From Barron's • Mar. 26, 2026

I find it incredibly telling that A.I.’s favorite way to describe any phenomenon is via evasion, or telling us what something is not.

From Slate • Mar. 20, 2026

The U.S. government hasn’t taken any actions against Eyyub but he is among the targets of a yearslong Justice Department investigation into suspected sanctions evasion, according to people familiar with the matter.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 19, 2026

But she clearly would die and likely was dying—this thinness, this weakness, this evasion.

From "The Girl Who Drank the Moon" by Kelly Barnhill

Related Words

• dodging