Circumvention

/ˌsɜːkəmˈvɛnʃən/ noun

Definition

The act of finding a way around something or avoiding something by using a clever trick or alternative method.

Etymology

From Latin circumvenire: circum- (around) plus venire (to come). It literally means 'to come around,' originally meaning 'to surround' before shifting to mean 'to outwit or avoid.'

Kelly Says

The word originally meant 'to trap someone by surrounding them'—so circumvention started as a military strategy before it became a word for any kind of clever evasion, showing how warfare shaped English vocabulary.

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