Avoid in Different Languages
Discover 'Avoid' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'avoid' holds great significance in our daily lives, as it encourages us to prevent potential problems or harm. Its cultural importance is evident across various societies, where avoiding negative behaviors and practices is essential for maintaining social harmony.
Understanding the translation of 'avoid' in different languages can be fascinating and useful. For instance, in Spanish, 'evitar' (eh-vee-tar) reflects a similar meaning, while in Japanese, 'sakebu' (sa-ke-bu) implies 'to avoid' or 'to refuse' something more forcefully.
Moreover, knowing how to express 'avoid' in various languages can help you navigate diverse cultural contexts and enhance your communication skills. Imagine traveling to France and being able to say 'éviter' to express your concerns about certain foods due to allergies or dietary restrictions!
Here are some translations of 'avoid' in different languages to get you started on your linguistic journey:
Avoid
Avoid in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | verhoed | ||
| "Verhoed" is derived from the Dutch word "behoeden", which means "to protect" or "to prevent." | |||
| Amharic | አስወግድ | ||
| Amharic "አስወግድ" ("avoid") is derived from the Proto-Semitic root "*s-w-g", meaning "to drive away". | |||
| Hausa | kauce | ||
| 'Kauce', besides meaning 'avoid', can also mean to escape from danger, or to save someone from danger. | |||
| Igbo | zere | ||
| "Zere" can also mean "to turn away" or "to shun" in Igbo. | |||
| Malagasy | aza | ||
| The term 'Aza' also implies a sense of escape, refuge, or safe haven in Malagasy tradition. | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | pewani | ||
| Pewani can also mean to 'deny' or 'refuse' something. | |||
| Shona | nzvenga | ||
| The Shona word 'nzvenga' also means 'to be careful' or 'to prevent something from happening'. | |||
| Somali | iska ilaali | ||
| 'Isk ilaali' also literally translates to 'don't guard' | |||
| Sesotho | qoba | ||
| The word "qoba" in Sesotho also means "beware" or "watch out" in English. | |||
| Swahili | epuka | ||
| The word "epuka" in Swahili derives from the Proto-Bantu root "-puk-" meaning "to flee" or "to escape". | |||
| Xhosa | thintela | ||
| In the Nguni Bantu language group, 'thintela' also means 'to keep away from' or 'to be careful'. | |||
| Yoruba | yago fun | ||
| The word "yago fun" in Yoruba, meaning "avoid", also has the connotation of "to steer clear of trouble or harm". | |||
| Zulu | gwema | ||
| 'Gwema' is a variant of 'gqwema', which means not only 'avoiding' someone or something but often specifically avoiding a taboo. | |||
| Bambara | fɛngɛ | ||
| Ewe | de axa | ||
| Kinyarwanda | irinde | ||
| Lingala | koboya | ||
| Luganda | okweewala | ||
| Sepedi | efoga | ||
| Twi (Akan) | po | ||
Avoid in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | تجنب | ||
| "تجنب" can also mean "to dodge" or "to be cautious" in Arabic. | |||
| Hebrew | לְהִמָנַע | ||
| The verb "לְהִמָנַע" comes from the root "מנע" which also means "to prevent", "to stop" or "to hold back". | |||
| Pashto | ډډه وکړئ | ||
| ډډه وکړئ can also refer to fleeing, escaping, abstaining, or withdrawing. | |||
| Arabic | تجنب | ||
| "تجنب" can also mean "to dodge" or "to be cautious" in Arabic. | |||
Avoid in Western European Languages
| Albanian | shmangni | ||
| The Albanian word "shmangni" also means "to evade" or "to escape". | |||
| Basque | saihestu | ||
| The Basque word "saihestu" originated from "saioa" (trial) and "hutsu" (empty), meaning "to make an empty trial." | |||
| Catalan | evitar | ||
| "Evitar" in Catalan comes from Latin "evitare" which means "to get out of the way". Its alternate meaning is "to shun". | |||
| Croatian | izbjegavajte | ||
| The word "Izbjegavajte" comes from the Proto-Slavic *izbēgati, meaning "to escape or avoid." | |||
| Danish | undgå | ||
| The word "undgå" can also mean "to escape" or "to evade" in Danish. | |||
| Dutch | vermijden | ||
| "Vermijden" literally means "to leave far" in Old Dutch. | |||
| English | avoid | ||
| "Avoid" derives from Middle French "esvoidier" (“to empty”) and shares roots with the Latin word "văcuus" (“empty"). | |||
| French | éviter | ||
| The word 'éviter' is derived from the Latin verb 'vitare,' which means 'to shun' or 'to keep away from'. | |||
| Frisian | mije | ||
| The verb "mije" also means "to hesitate" and is rooted in the Old Frisian word "mijia", meaning "to miss". | |||
| Galician | evitar | ||
| The Galician word "evitar" can also mean "to prevent". | |||
| German | vermeiden | ||
| "Vermeiden" also means "vermeiden" (to worm away, to decay, to destroy)", meaning that it can have the connotation of "to get rid of something". | |||
| Icelandic | forðast | ||
| "Forðast" is a verb that originally meant "stay away from" or "refrain from". | |||
| Irish | seachain | ||
| The word "seachain" is derived from the Old Irish word "sech", meaning "past", and often implies avoiding something for a specific period of time. | |||
| Italian | evitare | ||
| The word 'evitare' derives from the Latin 'evitare,' which originally meant to go out of one's way or to shun. | |||
| Luxembourgish | vermeiden | ||
| The Luxembourgish word "vermeiden" is derived from the Middle High German word "vermeiden," which also means "to avoid." However, in Luxembourgish, "vermeiden" can also mean "to forget" or "to ignore." | |||
| Maltese | evita | ||
| The word "evita" in Maltese has Latin origins, coming from the word "evitare" which means to escape or withdraw from something. | |||
| Norwegian | unngå | ||
| The word "unngå" originally meant to make a sharp turn or tack, as with a sailboat. | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | evitar | ||
| The verb "evitar" comes from the Latin "evitare", meaning "to shun, to keep away from" and can also mean "to prevent". | |||
| Scots Gaelic | seachain | ||
| The Gaelic word 'seachain' comes from 'seach,' meaning past or beyond, and 'achaidh,' meaning field, so it can also mean to go past a field. | |||
| Spanish | evitar | ||
| The word "evitar" derives from the Latin "evitare", meaning "to shun or withdraw from", and can also mean "to prevent or hinder". | |||
| Swedish | undvika | ||
| Undvika, a verb in Swedish that directly translates to "avoid", is also semantically identical to "undgå" in Norwegian and "unngå" in Bokmål. | |||
| Welsh | osgoi | ||
| The word "osgoi" in Welsh is derived from the Old Welsh word "oscoi," which means "to keep away from" or "to escape." | |||
Avoid in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | пазбягаць | ||
| "Пазбягаць" (avoid) derives from the Proto-Slavic verb *bęgati (to run), and its prefix "па-" may have been used to indicate an opposite or negative action, thus "to avoid." | |||
| Bosnian | izbjegavajte | ||
| The word "izbjegavajte" in Bosnian originates from the Proto-Slavic word "*izbēgati" meaning "to run away" or "to escape". | |||
| Bulgarian | да се избегне | ||
| The Bulgarian word "да се избегне" also means to spare, save or prevent something from happening. | |||
| Czech | vyhýbat se | ||
| The Czech word "vyhýbat se" can also refer to "to dodge". This meaning may be more common in informal contexts. | |||
| Estonian | vältima | ||
| Vältima, the Estonian verb for "avoid," can also mean to endure or to survive. | |||
| Finnish | välttää | ||
| ‘Välttää’ can mean both ‘avoid’ and ‘need’ in Finnish, and is linked to the words ‘lack’ (‘puute’) and ‘fault’ (‘vähä’). | |||
| Hungarian | elkerül | ||
| The word "elkerül" derives from the verb "kerül", meaning "to circle, go around, surround", and adds the prefix "el-" (away). | |||
| Latvian | izvairīties | ||
| The word "izvairīties" is derived from the Proto-Indo-European root *wei- "to bend, turn," also found in the English word "to avoid" and the Sanskrit word "vijati" "to weave, turn." | |||
| Lithuanian | venkite | ||
| The Lithuanian word "venkite" may also refer to a type of small boat used for recreational purposes. | |||
| Macedonian | избегнувајте | ||
| The word "избегнувајте" comes from the Old Church Slavonic word "ізбѣгати", which means "to flee" or "to escape". | |||
| Polish | uniknąć | ||
| "Uniknąć" in Polish also means "to escape" or "to run away". | |||
| Romanian | evita | ||
| "Evita" derives from the verb "a evita" (to avoid) and originally meant "avoidance". Now, it also refers to the act of avoiding responsibility or effort. | |||
| Russian | избегать | ||
| Derived from the Slavic word 'begati' ('run'), it originally meant not to run into or toward someone or something. | |||
| Serbian | избегавати | ||
| The word "избегавати" derives from the Old Slavic "begati", which means "to run" or "to escape." | |||
| Slovak | vyhnúť sa | ||
| The Slovak word "vyhnúť sa" also means "to recover" in the context of illness, as "vyhnúť sa chorobe" ("to recover from illness"). | |||
| Slovenian | izogibajte se | ||
| Izogibati se comes from the Slavic word ogibati and means to prevent, escape, or dodge. | |||
| Ukrainian | уникати | ||
| The Ukrainian word "уникати" also means to elude, escape, dodge, evade, or decline something. | |||
Avoid in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | এড়াতে | ||
| The verb 'এড়াতে' ('avoid') also implies taking physical steps to steer clear of someone or something. | |||
| Gujarati | ટાળો | ||
| The word "ટાળો" originates from the Sanskrit word "त्राण" (trāṇa), meaning "protection" or "shelter", indicating its role in safeguarding against harm or danger. | |||
| Hindi | से बचने | ||
| The word "से बचने" ("avoid") in Hindi literally means "to get away from" or "to escape." | |||
| Kannada | ತಪ್ಪಿಸಲು | ||
| "ತಪ್ಪಿಸಲು" is a derivation from "ತಪ್ಪು" meaning "mistake", signifying "to keep clear or away from a mistake." | |||
| Malayalam | ഒഴിവാക്കുക | ||
| The word "ഒഴിവാക്കുക" is derived from the Old Malayalam word "ഒഴിവ്" meaning "empty space" or "gap". It has come to mean "to avoid" as in "to leave an empty space". | |||
| Marathi | टाळा | ||
| टाळा, "to avoid" in Marathi, can also mean "a small piece of wood used to fasten a knot" | |||
| Nepali | बेवास्ता गर्नुहोस् | ||
| The word "बेवास्ता गर्नुहोस्" can also be used to mean "to ignore" or "to disregard" | |||
| Punjabi | ਬਚੋ | ||
| The word "bacho" may also refer to the act of saving or rescuing someone or something from danger or harm. | |||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | වළකින්න | ||
| The term "වළකින්න" is derived from the Sanskrit root "Vartaka" meaning "to turn away" or "to keep away from". | |||
| Tamil | தவிர்க்கவும் | ||
| The Tamil word 'தவிர்க்கவும்' originally meant 'to abstain from' and also has the meaning of 'to escape'. | |||
| Telugu | నివారించండి | ||
| The Telugu word “నివారించండి” is derived from the Sanskrit word “nivR^it”, which means “to turn away” or “to avert”. Alternatively, it can be used to express the idea of “keeping something at a distance”. | |||
| Urdu | سے بچنا | ||
| It comes from the Sanskrit word 'bhay', meaning fear. | |||
Avoid in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 避免 | ||
| 避免 can also mean 'exempt' or 'avoid paying taxes or duty'. | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 避免 | ||
| 在中文中，“避免”也可以表示“躲避”或“逃避”。 | |||
| Japanese | 避ける | ||
| '避ける' also means 'to abstain' in some contexts. | |||
| Korean | 기피 | ||
| The word "기피" originally meant "to dislike or fear something."} | |||
| Mongolian | зайлсхийх | ||
| "Зайлсхийх" also means "get rid of" in Mongolian. | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | ကိုရှောင်ကြဉ် | ||
Avoid in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | menghindari | ||
| Menghindari can also refer to 'prevent' or 'refrain' from doing something. | |||
| Javanese | ngindhari | ||
| The word 'ngindhari' has a similar form with 'ingindheri' (to remember), but they have a different meaning. | |||
| Khmer | ជៀសវាង | ||
| ជៀសវាង also means to escape, evade, get out of, shun, and steer clear of. | |||
| Lao | ຫລີກລ້ຽງ | ||
| "ຫລີກລ້ຽງ" can also mean to evade, eschew, escape, get around, get out of, keep clear of, keep away from, shirk, skirt, slide away from, steer clear of, or duck. | |||
| Malay | elakkan | ||
| The word "elakkan" in Malay is derived from the Proto-Malayo-Polynesian word "*ilik" meaning "to turn away". It also has the alternate meaning of "to evade". | |||
| Thai | หลีกเลี่ยง | ||
| The word "หลีกเลี่ยง" is derived from the Sanskrit word "लिक्ष", meaning to move out of the way, and the Thai suffix "-ง", indicating an action. | |||
| Vietnamese | tránh | ||
| "Tránh" also carries the meanings of "dodge," "dodge the rain," and "prevent." | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | iwasan | ||
Avoid in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | çəkinin | ||
| The Azerbaijani word "çəkinin" comes from the Old Turkic "çək" meaning "to draw" and the infinitive suffix "in" meaning "to." Thus, "çəkinin" originally meant "to withdraw, to shrink back." | |||
| Kazakh | болдырмау | ||
| Болдырмау also means "to leave" or "to abandon" in Kazakh. | |||
| Kyrgyz | качуу | ||
| The Kyrgyz word "качуу" can also mean "to run away" or "to escape". | |||
| Tajik | пешгирӣ кардан | ||
| "Пешгирӣ кардан" is a Tajik phrase meaning "to avoid," but it also has the alternate meaning of "to prevent". | |||
| Turkmen | gaça dur | ||
| Uzbek | qochmoq | ||
| "Qochmoq" is also used to mean "to pass by," "to get past," "to let pass," "to let go," "to release," "to forgive," "to overlook," "to ignore," "to neglect," "to omit," "to leave out," and "to skip." | |||
| Uyghur | ساقلىنىڭ | ||
Avoid in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | hōʻalo | ||
| The word hōʻalo can also mean 'to conceal' | |||
| Maori | karo | ||
| The word "karo" in Maori can also refer to a "fence" or "enclosure". | |||
| Samoan | aloese | ||
| The word "aloese" in Samoan, which often means "avoid", is derived from the Proto-Malayo-Polynesian root "*caluŋ"} | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | iwasan | ||
| The word "iwasan" in Tagalog also means "to shun," "to steer clear of," or "to keep away from." | |||
Avoid in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | jark'aña | ||
| Guarani | jehekýi | ||
Avoid in International Languages
| Esperanto | eviti | ||
| The Esperanto word 'eviti' derives from the Proto-Indo-European root *h₁ey- 'to go', also the origin of English 'avoid'. | |||
| Latin | fugiunt, | ||
| The Latin word "fugiunt" also means "run away" or "flee". | |||
Avoid in Others Languages
| Greek | αποφύγει | ||
| The Greek word "αποφύγει" derives from the prefix "από" meaning "away" and the verb "φύγω" meaning "to escape", hence "to avoid". | |||
| Hmong | zam | ||
| "Zam" is not a Hmong word for "avoid". But in the Hmong dialect of Guizhou, China, "zam" means "to hide, cover". | |||
| Kurdish | bergirtin | ||
| The word "bergirtin" in Kurdish means "avoid", and it shares an etymology with the Persian word "parheez" (to abstain, to avoid). | |||
| Turkish | önlemek | ||
| The Turkish word "önlemek" can also refer to preventing someone from moving forward in a political or social context. | |||
| Xhosa | thintela | ||
| In the Nguni Bantu language group, 'thintela' also means 'to keep away from' or 'to be careful'. | |||
| Yiddish | ויסמיידן | ||
| "Vismeydn" is likely related to the German word "vermeiden" which also means "to avoid" or "to evade" | |||
| Zulu | gwema | ||
| 'Gwema' is a variant of 'gqwema', which means not only 'avoiding' someone or something but often specifically avoiding a taboo. | |||
| Assamese | এৰাই চলক | ||
| Aymara | jark'aña | ||
| Bhojpuri | टालल | ||
| Dhivehi | ދުރުކުރުން | ||
| Dogri | परहेज | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | iwasan | ||
| Guarani | jehekýi | ||
| Ilocano | liklikan | ||
| Krio | avɔyd | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | بەدوورگرتن | ||
| Maithili | टालि दिय | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯊꯩꯗꯣꯛꯄ | ||
| Mizo | hawisan | ||
| Oromo | dhiisi | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ଏଡାନ୍ତୁ | | ||
| Quechua | witiy | ||
| Sanskrit | वर्जयतु | ||
| Tatar | саклан | ||
| Tigrinya | አወግድ | ||
| Tsonga | papalata | ||