stave off

verb

Definition of stave offnext
1
as in to repel
to drive back managed to stave off the invaders

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to prevent
to keep from happening by taking action in advance the quartermaster staved off a shortage by requisitioning more than enough supplies

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of stave off To help stave off conflict, the study’s authors said, parents should be proactive about tough conversations and should consider an independent or professional fiduciary. — Hayley Cuccinello, CNBC, 25 Sep. 2026 Healthy digestion and a healthy gut play a role in staving off inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) and irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). — Vanessa Caceres, Verywell Health, 23 Sep. 2026 Despite years of low ferret figures in the wild, biologists think that there’s hope for a population recovery, with the advent of new techniques to stave off the plague. — Shi En Kim, AZCentral.com, 21 Sep. 2026 The Chicago Teachers Union pushed to be part of the program anyway, arguing every dollar would help stave off potential layoffs or program cuts. — A.d. Quig, Chicago Tribune, 20 Sep. 2026 See All Example Sentences for stave off
Recent Examples of Synonyms for stave off
  1. repel
  2. prevent
  3. resist
  4. avert
  5. turn back
  6. head off
  7. turn away
  8. repulse
Verb
  • The wax repels liquid water but keeps tiny pores, so vapor can still escape.
    — New Atlas, New Atlas, 4 Oct. 2026
  • The law prohibits federal officials from stationing troops or armed personnel at polling places, except when necessary to repel armed enemies of the United States.
    — TIME Staff, Time, 3 Oct. 2026
Definition of repel
Verb
  • The nation eliminated the domestic spread of measles in 2000 by maintaining high vaccination rates, but those rates have fallen in recent years to below the 95% coverage needed to prevent outbreaks.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 6 Oct. 2026
  • Evidence might include the underlying need, capability fit, timing, accessibility, ability to deliver and risks or constraints that could prevent action.
    — Adam Feiner, Forbes.com, 5 Oct. 2026
Definition of prevent
Verb
  • But resist the urge to throw every brightening ingredient at the problem.
    — Glamour, Glamour, 2 Oct. 2026
  • Attempts to coordinate the different agencies under a central authority to fight organized crime have failed in Congress, where professional associations representing those agencies have resisted anything that would reduce their power.
    — MATIAS SPEKTOR, Foreign Affairs, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of resist
Verb
  • While people in Israel are praising the passengers and the captain as heroes for averting disaster, a broader debate is emerging over government failures that allowed something like this to happen, Lonsdorf says.
    — Brittney Melton, NPR, 5 Oct. 2026
  • Each time the door shut behind the man, Shawn had the feeling that some danger had been temporarily dodged, some crisis averted until the next day.
    — Rachel Heng, New Yorker, 4 Oct. 2026
Definition of avert
Verb
  • Tight end Travis Kelce looks like he’s turned back the clock for Kansas City, which is running the ball well.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 1 Oct. 2026
  • An Israeli military official said its fighter jets had turned back before the plane landed at Tabuk.
    — Gerry Shih, Washington Post, 30 Sep. 2026
Definition of turn back
Verb
  • Unionized staff at the Whitney Museum in New York ratified its second contract Sunday night, hours ahead a strike deadline, narrowly heading off a disruption to the opening of a forthcoming Roy Lichtenstein retrospective.
    — Tessa Solomon, ARTnews.com, 5 Oct. 2026
  • Earlier this year, Newsom called for local elections clerks to count ballots faster to head off misinformation ahead of the June 2 primary.
    — Lia Russell, Sacbee.com, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of head off
Verb
  • The report revealed that 85% of providers in the United States experienced moderate or severe staffing challenges in the past year and 55% have had to turn away people in need of care due to inadequate staffing.
    — STAT, STAT, 2 Oct. 2026
  • The plane was told to wait for clearance from the Jordanian military and then turned away.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 1 Oct. 2026
Definition of turn away
Verb
  • Her widowed aunt plays chaperone as Susanna attends heady lectures and repulses her many suitors.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 5 Oct. 2026
  • Young people just aren’t interested, partly because they’re repulsed by bodily fluids.
    — Marta Balaga, Variety, 16 Sep. 2026
Definition of repulse

Browse Nearby Words

staved off
stave off
staves off
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Cite this Entry

“Stave off.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/stave%20off. Accessed 9 Oct. 2026.

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