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

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

It concluded that while train companies had been taking more robust action to counter an increase in fare evasion, passenger safeguards had not kept pace with the changes.

From BBC • Mar. 16, 2026

Binance’s 2023 agreement with U.S. authorities requires it to screen clients for potential terrorism financing and sanctions evasion and to report suspicious transactions to the Treasury Department.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 11, 2026

But on good days it still feels like a vacation, an evasion.

From "Cat's Eye" by Margaret Atwood

Related Words

• dodging