Library / English Dictionary

DODGE

Pronunciation (US):

(GB):

 I. (noun) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

A quick evasive movement

Classified under:

Nouns denoting acts or actions

Hypernyms ("dodge" is a kind of...):

evasion (the act of physically escaping from something (an opponent or a pursuer or an unpleasant situation) by some adroit maneuver)

Derivation:

dodge (make a sudden movement in a new direction so as to avoid)

Sense 2

Meaning:

An elaborate or deceitful scheme contrived to deceive or evade

Example:

his testimony was just a contrivance to throw us off the track

Synonyms:

contrivance; dodge; stratagem

Classified under:

Nouns denoting cognitive processes and contents

Hypernyms ("dodge" is a kind of...):

scheme; strategy (an elaborate and systematic plan of action)

Hyponyms (each of the following is a kind of "dodge"):

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)

Derivation:

dodgy (marked by skill in deception)

Sense 3

Meaning:

A statement that evades the question by cleverness or trickery

Synonyms:

dodge; dodging; scheme

Classified under:

Nouns denoting communicative processes and contents

Hypernyms ("dodge" is a kind of...):

falsehood; falsity; untruth (a false statement)

Derivation:

dodge (avoid or try to avoid fulfilling, answering, or performing (duties, questions, or issues))

 II. (verb) 

Sense 1

Meaning:

Avoid or try to avoid fulfilling, answering, or performing (duties, questions, or issues)

Example:

he evaded the questions skillfully

Synonyms:

circumvent; dodge; duck; elude; evade; fudge; hedge; parry; put off; sidestep; skirt

Classified under:

Verbs of telling, asking, ordering, singing

Hypernyms (to "dodge" is one way to...):

avoid (stay clear from; keep away from; keep out of the way of someone or something)

Troponyms (each of the following is one way to "dodge"):

beg (dodge, avoid answering, or take for granted)

quibble (evade the truth of a point or question by raising irrelevant objections)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

dodge (a statement that evades the question by cleverness or trickery)

dodger (a shifty deceptive person)

dodging (deliberately avoiding; keeping away from or preventing from happening)

dodging (nonperformance of something distasteful (as by deceit or trickery) that you are supposed to do)

Sense 2

Meaning:

Make a sudden movement in a new direction so as to avoid

Example:

The child dodged the teacher's blow

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Hypernyms (to "dodge" is one way to...):

move (move so as to change position, perform a nontranslational motion)

Sentence frame:

Somebody ----s something

Derivation:

dodge (a quick evasive movement)

Sense 3

Meaning:

Move to and fro or from place to place usually in an irregular course

Example:

the pickpocket dodged through the crowd

Classified under:

Verbs of walking, flying, swimming

Hypernyms (to "dodge" is one way to...):

move (move so as to change position, perform a nontranslational motion)

Sentence frames:

Somebody ----s
Somebody ----s PP

Credits

 Context examples: 

But he circled just beyond the range of the club, snarling with bitterness and rage; and while he circled he watched the club so as to dodge it if thrown by François, for he was become wise in the way of clubs.

(The Call of the Wild, by Jack London)

He used his gun as a club with which to knock her over, but she dodged out of reach.

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)

The dog-musher made a rush of it, and White Fang dodged between the legs of a group of men.

(White Fang, by Jack London)

Seeing that I meant to dodge, he also paused; and a moment or two passed in feints on his part and corresponding movements upon mine.

(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

Mugridge’s face turned white under its sooty veneer, and when Wolf Larsen called for a rope and a couple of men, the miserable Cockney fled wildly out of the galley and dodged and ducked about the deck with the grinning crew in pursuit.

(The Sea-Wolf, by Jack London)

He dodged.

(The Call of the Wild, by Jack London)

For some seconds, unwilling to hurt her, yet dogged in his desire to return to the attack, Hans dodged back and forth.

(Love of Life and Other Stories, by Jack London)

White Fang still danced on, dodging and doubling, leaping in and out, and ever inflicting damage.

(White Fang, by Jack London)

It occurred to me there was no time to lose, and dodging the boom as it once more lurched across the deck, I slipped aft and down the companion stairs into the cabin.

(Treasure Island, by Robert Louis Stevenson)

But here was a dog that kept at a distance, dancing and dodging here and there and all about.

(White Fang, by Jack London)