Avoid and Refrain

Avoid

Avoid verb - Refrain from certain foods or beverages.
Usage example: During Ramadan, Muslims avoid tobacco during the day

Refrain is a synonym for avoid in action topic. In some cases you can use "Refrain" instead a verb "Avoid", when it comes to topics like skip.

Refrain

Refrain verb - Resist doing something.

Avoid is a synonym for refrain in action topic. You can use "Avoid" instead a verb "Refrain", if it concerns topics such as stop, forbear, skip, do without.

Nearby Words: refrained, refraining

Common collocations

time avoid time refrain time
suspicion avoid suspicion refrain suspicion

Both words in one sentence

  • By the same token, the villains refrain from targeting civilian identities and try to avoid killing superheroes.
  • Colour Coded Timestop Movies can avoid this easily; they may just refrain filming a timestopped sequence without these visual aids, or perhaps zoom the camera in a bug that froze above the hero's head.
  • A word in Greek or Latin that means "avoid" or "refrain from" can sometimes be translated into English, albeit loosely, as "hate".
Cite this Source
Refrain and Avoid. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 21, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/avoid/refrain
Avoid & Refrain. N.p., 2016. Web. 21 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/avoid/refrain>.
Refrain or Avoid. 2016. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/avoid/refrain.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "avoid" and "refrain" have occurred on timeline