evitar

Senses

1. 1.

   to avoid

   to refrain from or keep away from something

2. 2.

   to prevent

   to stop something from happening

3. 3.

   to dodge

   to move out of the way of something approaching

Examples

• "Intento evitar el tráfico saliendo temprano."

  I try to avoid traffic by leaving early.

• "No pude evitar reír cuando vi el vídeo."

  I couldn't help but laugh when I saw the video.

• "Debemos evitar que esto vuelva a ocurrir."

  We must prevent this from happening again.

Usage

Very common verb in both everyday and formal contexts. Often used with infinitives (evitar + infinitive) or with noun objects. The reflexive *evitarse* is rare. Frequent in expressions like "no se puede evitar" (it can't be helped).