sidestep
Americanverb (used without object)
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sidesteps,
present (3rd person singular)
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sidestepped,
past participle, past
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sidestepping
present participle
-
to step to one side.
-
to evade or avoid a decision, problem, or the like.
verb (used with object)
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sidesteps,
present (3rd person singular)
-
sidestepped,
past participle, past
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sidestepping
present participle
-
to avoid or dodge by stepping aside.
-
to evade or avoid (a decision, problem, or the like).
verb
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to step aside from or out of the way of (something)
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(tr) to dodge or circumvent
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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sidestepsimple
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sidestepssimple
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have sidesteppedperfect
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has sidesteppedperfect
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am sidesteppingprogressive
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are sidesteppingprogressive
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is sidesteppingprogressive
-
have been sidesteppingperfect progressive
-
has been sidesteppingperfect progressive
Past
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sidesteppedsimple
-
had sidesteppedperfect
-
was sidesteppingprogressive
-
were sidesteppingprogressive
-
had been sidesteppingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of sidestep
An Americanism dating back to 1900–05
Explanation
To sidestep something is to get around it by changing the subject or doing something else. If a little kid asks you where babies come from, you might sidestep the question by going to get ice cream. Very quickly. People sidestep questions all the time. When celebrities or politicians don’t want to talk about something, they sidestep reporters’ questions by answering in a long-winded, vague way — or by saying, "No comment." You can also sidestep in a more literal way by physically stepping around things, or stepping to the side in a dance or march. The military term was first used in the eighteenth century, and the figurative meaning followed around 1900.
Vocabulary lists containing sidestep
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.
See Examples For:
The move appears to be an attempt to sidestep U.S.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
You can sidestep capital-gains taxes by contributing an appreciated mutual-fund position to a donor-advised fund.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
The device features a privacy recording light to notify wearers when it’s recording, but modifications available all over the internet allow users to sidestep it.
From Slate ● Aug. 5, 2026
Much of the craze has centered around the models' ability to sidestep structural constraints, including strict historic-preservation rules in many European cities that restrict exterior-wall modifications such as drilling for external AC units.
From BBC ● Jul. 16, 2026
I release the chair back and sidestep it to sit down.
From "Divergent" by Veronica Roth
But the film sidesteps the fact that Liam spent the mourning period criticising his brother for his failure to appear at charity shows supporting the survivors.
From BBC ● Sep. 7, 2026
When a leader consistently sidesteps tension and doesn’t model what it looks like to receive a hard truth, the team reads the signal: Disagreement is not safe here.
From MarketWatch ● May 27, 2026
It sidesteps what people at my age know: that as time goes by, we lose many of the connections that once helped energize our younger selves.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 18, 2026
As long as the U.S. economy sidesteps recession, the card companies can see the sales and earnings growth come in.
From Barron's ● Mar. 19, 2026
She sidesteps her desk, skimming the surface with her finger.
From "Divergent" by Veronica Roth
Zuffa Boxing chief Dana White largely sidestepped that question afterwards.
From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026
As Robyn explains in Slate, the majority sidestepped the question weighing the actual legality of the ballroom’s construction, focusing instead on a technical question of standing.
From Slate ● Sep. 3, 2026
She also sidestepped questions about whether she regretted any of her decisions during the uprising.
From Barron's ● Jul. 29, 2026
Bonta and the other state attorneys sidestepped the political landscape in making their lawsuit arguments.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 25, 2026
He had sidestepped the abyss yet one more time.
From "The House of the Spirits: A Novel" by Isabel Allende
It's a strategy that focuses on how apps are designed, not what is posted on them, essentially sidestepping the broad immunity internet sites enjoy in the US regarding content created by their users.
From Barron's ● Aug. 10, 2026
The dollar was also hit by the Fed chairman sidestepping questions about how he intends to achieve the 2% inflation target, Commerzbank’s Michael Pfister said.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 30, 2026
Armed with flashlights, dozens of community members stepped into the darkened Westlake Theatre, sidestepping puddles and broken glass as they imagined what the century-old movie palace could become.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 29, 2026
The book ends with Fagan questioning the appeal of hunting across the millennia and sidestepping an answer.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 30, 2026
We’re leaping over gigantic roots, sidestepping trees, sliding under low branches, and withstanding the wind … all while laughing.
From "Kwame Crashes the Underworld" by Craig Kofi Farmer
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.
