averted; averting; averts
1
: to turn away or aside (the eyes, one's gaze, etc.) in avoidance
I found the sight so grotesque that I had to avert my eyes …—
John Gregory Dunne
John Gregory Dunne2
: to see coming and ward off : avoid
avert disaster
Examples of avert in a Sentence
He sped up and averted an accident.
The diplomatic talks narrowly averted a war.
an attempt to avert a strike at the plant
Recent Examples on the Web
Though a breakup was averted, the Microsoft case established a legal precedent for how the U.S. government could pursue monopolistic tech companies, Weinstein said.
—Jaclyn Diaz, NPR, 24 Apr. 2025
If Trump brings his tariffs down enough, investors believe a recession could be averted.
—Stan Choe, Los Angeles Times, 23 Apr. 2025
Instead of leading to collapse, this causes the cloud to fragment into many smaller bits, producing a cluster of newborn stars and averting direct collapse into a black hole.
—Paul Sutter, Space.com, 21 Apr. 2025
Following today’s announcement, borrowers who are severely delinquent or in default on their federal student loans may have very little time to avert severe financial consequences.
—Adam S. Minsky, Forbes.com, 21 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for avert
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Jaclyn Diaz, NPR, 24 Apr. 2025
If Trump brings his tariffs down enough, investors believe a recession could be averted.
—Stan Choe, Los Angeles Times, 23 Apr. 2025
Instead of leading to collapse, this causes the cloud to fragment into many smaller bits, producing a cluster of newborn stars and averting direct collapse into a black hole.
—Paul Sutter, Space.com, 21 Apr. 2025
Following today’s announcement, borrowers who are severely delinquent or in default on their federal student loans may have very little time to avert severe financial consequences.
—Adam S. Minsky, Forbes.com, 21 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for avert
Cite this Entry
“Avert.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/avert. Accessed 29 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
avert
verb1
: to turn away
avert one's eyes
2
: to keep from happening
averted an accident
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