stave off

British  

verb

1. (tr, adverb) to avert or hold off (something undesirable or harmful), esp temporarily

   to stave off hunger

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stave off Idioms  

1. Keep or hold away, repel, as in The Federal Reserve Board is determined to stave off inflation. This metaphoric expression transfers beating something off with a staff or stave to nonphysical repulsion. [c. 1600]

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

stave off

EU trade chief Maros Sefcovic will head to Beijing on Thursday for two days of make-or-break meetings with Chinese officials to try to stave off a trade war.

From Barron's ● Oct. 5, 2026

Facing match point at 8-9 down in the tie break, Alcaraz fired an ace before leaning on a drop shot to stave off a second.

From BBC ● Sep. 27, 2026

So they ran routes in the frontyard or shot hoops in the driveway or rode bikes in the neighborhood, anything to stave off the inevitable draw of mindless videos on YouTube.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 17, 2026

But they did have one potentially innovative and surprising, if disconcerting, solution to our national public health information crisis: A.I. has the potential to help stave off a conspiratorial catastrophe during the next pandemic.

From Slate ● Aug. 26, 2026

Dinwiddie, who wanted aid from the king to stave off the French, had the report published.

From "George Washington, Spymaster" by Thomas B. Allen