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Origin and history of avert

avert(v.)

mid-15c., transitive, "turn (something) away, cause to turn away," from Old French avertir "turn, direct; avert; make aware" (12c.), from Vulgar Latin *advertire, from Latin avertere "to turn away; to drive away; shun; ward off; alienate," from ab "off, away from" (see ab-) + vertere "to turn" (from PIE root *wer- (2) "to turn, bend"). The meaning "ward off, prevent the occurrence of" is from 1610s. Related: Averted; averting.

also from mid-15c.

Entries linking to avert

aversion(n.)

1590s, "a turning away from;" 1650s in the figurative sense of "mental attitude of repugnance or opposition," from French aversion (16c.) and directly from Latin aversionem (nominative aversio), noun of action from past-participle stem of aversus "turned away, backwards, behind, hostile," itself past participle of avertere "to turn away" (see avert). Aversion therapy in psychology is from 1946.

ab-

word-forming element meaning "away, from, from off, down," denoting disjunction, separation, departure; from Latin ab (prep.) "off, away from" in reference to space or distance, also of time, from PIE root *apo- "off, away" (also the source of Greek apo "off, away from, from," Sanskrit apa "away from," Gothic af, English of, off; see apo-).

The Latin word also denoted "agency by; source, origin; relation to, in consequence of." Since classical times usually reduced to a- before -m-, -p-, or -v-; typically abs- before -c-, -q-, or -t-.

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debar
early 15c., "to shut out, exclude" (from a place), also "prevent, prohibit" (an action), from French débarrer, from Old French desbarer (12c., which, however, meant only "to unbar, unbolt," from des- "do the opposite of" (see dis-) + barrer "to bar," from barre "bar" (see bar (n.
obviate
1590s, "to meet and dispose of, clear (something) out of the way," from Late Latin obviatus, past participle of obviare "act contrary to, go against," from Latin obvius "that is in the way, that moves against," from obviam (adv.) "in the way," from ob "in front of, against" (see
avoid
late 14c., "shun (someone), refrain from (something), have nothing to do with (an action, a scandal, etc.), escape, evade," from Anglo-French avoider "to clear out, withdraw (oneself)," partially Englished from Old French esvuidier "to empty out," from es- "out" (see ex-) + vuidi
deprecation
c. 1500, deprecacioun, "prayer to avert evil, earnest desire for exemption or deliverance," from Old French deprecation and...deprecatio) "a warding off or averting by prayer," noun of action from past-participle stem of deprecari "plead in excuse; avert...
apostrophe
apostrophos (prosoidia) "(the accent of) turning away," thus, a mark showing where a letter has been omitted, from apostrephein "avert...
scare
English skerren "to frighten" someone (late 12c.), from Old Norse skirra "to frighten; to shrink from, shun; to prevent, avert...
charm
It is attested from 1590s as "any item worn to avert evil;" the meaning "small trinket fastened to a watch-chain, etc." is...
foreclose
late 13c., from Old French forclos, past participle of forclore "exclude, shut out; shun; drive away" (12c.), from fors "out" (Modern French hors; from Latin foris "outside;" see foreign) + clore "to shut" (see close (v.)). Senses in English influenced by words in for- (which is
forbid
Old English forbeodan "forbid, prohibit" (past tense forbead, plural forbudon, past participle forboden), from for- "against" + beodan "to command" (from PIE root *bheudh- "be aware, make aware"). Common Germanic compound (compare Old Frisian forbiada, Dutch verbieden, Old High G
runt
c. 1500, "old or decayed tree stump" (Douglas), a provincial word of unknown origin. The meaning was extended to "small ox or cow," especially of the breeds characteristic of Wales and the Scottish Highlands (1540s, if indeed this is the same word), and by 1610s generally to unde

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