as in to prevent
to keep from happening by taking action in advance
you can often forestall skidding on the ice simply by driving more slowly
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Recent Examples of forestall
The same could be said of his recent predecessors: Pope John Paul II, who met with or wrote to half a dozen world leaders and activists in 2003 in an effort to forestall the U.S.-led war in Iraq, and Pope Benedict, who spoke against the war then in progress in 2006.
—
Paul Elie, New Yorker, 9 May 2025
But even better, omalizumab can forestall allergic reactions at the source.
—Dylan Scott, Vox, 15 Apr. 2025
The bottom line: Big pharmacies like Walgreens and CVS went deep into physical retail at the very time when consumers were moving online, but managed to forestall some troubles thanks to a boom in COVID testing and vaccinations (all of which led to pharmacist burnout and shortages).
—Dan Primack, Axios, 10 Dec. 2024
Hiring freezes, furloughs and layoffs may seem dramatic for a city that only a few short years ago had 16% fiscal reserves, but taking action today will forestall more dramatic cuts should the economy take a turn for the worse.
—The Denver Post Editorial Board, Denver Post, 23 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for forestall
Paul Elie, New Yorker, 9 May 2025
But even better, omalizumab can forestall allergic reactions at the source.
—Dylan Scott, Vox, 15 Apr. 2025
The bottom line: Big pharmacies like Walgreens and CVS went deep into physical retail at the very time when consumers were moving online, but managed to forestall some troubles thanks to a boom in COVID testing and vaccinations (all of which led to pharmacist burnout and shortages).
—Dan Primack, Axios, 10 Dec. 2024
Hiring freezes, furloughs and layoffs may seem dramatic for a city that only a few short years ago had 16% fiscal reserves, but taking action today will forestall more dramatic cuts should the economy take a turn for the worse.
—The Denver Post Editorial Board, Denver Post, 23 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for forestall
Recent Examples of Synonyms for forestall
Verb
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Until now, there was no centralized system in place to prevent double billing, which enabled overpayments to go unnoticed.—
Jasmine Laws,
MSNBC Newsweek,
23 July 2025
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Engineering teams that achieve maximum resilience focus on designing recovery systems while investing in observability tools and automation for response capabilities rather than preventing all failures.—
Raju Dandigam,
Forbes.com,
23 July 2025
Verb
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Colorado hasn’t set up the grants to prove that a particular group’s efforts averted a certain number of injuries or deaths, but models that worked in other major cities should be helpful in the Denver area, said Dr. Ned Calonge, the state health department’s chief medical officer.—
Meg Wingerter,
Denver Post,
28 July 2025
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Understanding the gravity of a red flag warning and adhering to these precautions is paramount in averting wildfires during these perilous conditions.—
CA Weather Bot,
Sacbee.com,
24 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Forestall.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/forestall. Accessed 5 Aug. 2025.
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