Circumvent Meaning
/səːkəmˈvɛnt/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
verbto avoid or get around something; to bypass
verbto surround or besiege
Sentence Examples
You'll have to find a trick to circumvent that issue.
For every law, there's always someone trying to circumvent it.
CEFR Practice Quiz
To ____ the strict security, the spy used a hidden tunnel.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
They tried to ____ the new rules by finding a legal loophole tonight.
Word Origin & History
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *(s)ker-der. Ancient Greek κίρκος (kírkos)bor. Latin circus Latin circum Latin circum- Proto-Indo-European *gʷem- Proto-Indo-European *-yéti Proto-Indo-European *gʷm̥yéti Proto-Italic *gʷənjō Latin veniō Latin circumveniōlbor. English circumvent Learned borrowing from Latin circumveniō.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"The line turns a sharp right-angle to the north to circumvent the town, and then plunges straight into the 1 in 50, which lasts for nearly 20 miles with few intermissions, and some pitches of 1 in 40."
— 1950 April, Timothy H. Cobb, “The Kenya-Uganda Railway”, in Railway Magazine, page 265:
"We are mortified by not being thought worthy of trust; and there is also a feeling of small triumph in circumventing those who doubt either our inclination or our power of service."
— 1834, L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], Francesca Carrara. […], volume III, London: Richard Bentley, […], (successor to Henry Colburn), →OCLC, pages 279–280:
Explore More C1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
To ____ the strict security, the spy used a hidden tunnel.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
They tried to ____ the new rules by finding a legal loophole tonight.