staves off
Holds at bay
To stave off is to keep something undesirable at bay, at least temporarily: She ate a granola bar to stave off hunger until dinner.
The thing staved off is typically a threat, decline, or unwanted outcome—boredom, creditors, disaster.
Staves off is the third-person singular present tense: The medication staves off infection.
- avertsPrevents from occurring
- forestallsPrevents by prior action
- preventsStops from occurring
- obviatePrevent by anticipation
- circumventsEvades by cleverness
keeps at bay · repel · beats back · preclude · shields · guards · mitigates · deters · deflect · thwart · postpones · buys time · halts · divert · dodges · holds back · parries · blocks
- repelsrepels, keeps away, drives away, pushes away, turns away
staves offinvites
Requests attendance formally
attracts · lures · beckons · courts · encourages
staves offhastens
Causes to occur sooner
accelerates · brings on · precipitates · expedites · speeds up
off, staff, staffed, staffs, staffing, stave, staves, staving, staved