eschew

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Definitions (6)

Toggle American Heritage definitions American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. transitive verb To avoid; shun. See Synonyms at escape.

Toggle Century definitions Century Dictionary (3)

Toggle GNU Webster definitions GNU Webster's 1913 (1)

Toggle WordNet definitions WordNet (1)

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Examples

  • Contrariwise, he taught us to shun and eschew what was hideous, to make war upon it, and to be on our guard against its contaminating influence. —  Matthew Arnold
  • He taught us to “liberate the gentler element in oneself,” to eschew what was base and brutal, unholy and unkind. —  Matthew Arnold
  • He was disgusted with his failure, and resolved to eschew dramatic music; so for the nonce he devoted himself to instrumental music and cantata. —  The Great Italian and French Composers
  • [NOTE: Full disclosure: I have to admit, I love the word eschew and use it all the time in conversation, but I eschew 'eschew' when writing formally.]
  • Against such vain imaginings Arnold set, in prose, the “inexorable sentence” in which Butler warned us to eschew pleasant self-deception; and, in verse, the persistent question — —  Matthew Arnold
 

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Eschew has been looked up 655 times, favorited once, listed 148 times, and commented on 4 times.

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Roget's II Roget's II: The New Thesaurus

Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary. Copyright © 2003, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

Etymologies (3)

Toggle American Heritage etymologies American Heritage Dictionary (1)

  1. Middle English escheuen, from Old French eschivir, of Germanic origin; akin to shy1.

Toggle Century etymologies Century Dictionary (2)

  1. Middle English eschew, eschiewe, from Old French eschiu, eskiu, shy, unwilling, = Provencal esquiu = Spanish Portuguese esquivo = Italian schifato, reserved, discreet, circumspect, etc., from Old High German *scioh, Middle High German schiech (German scheu) = English shy: see shy, a. Hence eschew, v.
  2. from Middle English eschewen, eschuen, eschuwen, from Old French eschuer, eschiwer, eschiver, eschever, eschiuver, eskiver, etc., = Provencal eschivar, esquivar = Spanish Portuguese esquivar = Italian schifare, avoid, shun, eschew, from Old High German sciuhen, Middle High German schiuhen, German scheuchen, frighten, scheuen, avoid, shun, fear, from Old High German *scioh, Middle High German schiech (German scheu), shy: see eschew, adjective, and shy, a.
 

Pronunciations
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/ɛsˈtʃu/
by American Heritage

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