dodge

To dodge something is to avoid it. In dodge ball, players dodge the balls being thrown at them.

Dodging is making quick, sudden movements, usually to avoid something. You have to move quickly to dodge a flower pot that's falling from a ledge. In football, running backs are good at dodging defensive players. Politicians do a lot of maneuvers and manipulations to dodge blame, and plenty of people dodge responsibility for something they're supposed to take care of. So any kind of evasion strategy is a dodge.

Definitions of dodge
  1. noun
    a quick evasive movement
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    type of:
    evasion
    the act of physically escaping from something (an opponent or a pursuer or an unpleasant situation) by some adroit maneuver
  2. noun
    a statement that evades the question by cleverness or trickery
    synonyms: dodging, scheme
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    type of:
    falsehood, falsity, untruth
    a false statement
  3. noun
    an elaborate or deceitful scheme contrived to deceive or evade
    synonyms: contrivance, stratagem
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    types:
    plant
    something planted secretly for discovery by another
    pump-and-dump scheme
    an illegal scheme for making money by manipulating stock prices; the schemer persuades other people to buy the stock and then sells it himself as soon as the price of the stock rises
    wangle, wangling
    an instance of accomplishing something by scheming or trickery
    type of:
    scheme, strategy
    an elaborate and systematic plan of action
  4. verb
    make a sudden movement in a new direction so as to avoid
    “The child dodged the teacher's blow”
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    type of:
    move
    move so as to change position, perform a nontranslational motion
  5. verb
    move to and fro or from place to place usually in an irregular course
    “the pickpocket dodged through the crowd”
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    type of:
    move
    move so as to change position, perform a nontranslational motion
  6. verb
    avoid or try to avoid fulfilling, answering, or performing (duties, questions, or issues)
    “He dodged the issue”
    synonyms: circumvent, duck, elude, evade, fudge, hedge, parry, put off, sidestep, skirt
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    types:
    beg
    dodge, avoid answering, or take for granted
    quibble
    evade the truth of a point or question by raising irrelevant objections
    type of:
    avoid
    stay clear from; keep away from; keep out of the way of someone or something
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