warding off
Deflecting potential threats
Warding off is the act of deflecting or preventing something unwanted from reaching you.
You ward off a blow, an illness, or an attacker.
The phrase often appears with abstract threats: She drank orange juice to ward off a cold.
Garlic supposedly wards off vampires.
The image is of keeping danger at bay through active resistance.
- avertingPreventing by action
- preventingStopping before occurrence
- parryingDeflecting an attack
- withstandingTolerating force or hardship
- apotropaic magicRituals to avert evil
blocking · deflecting · holding back · rebuffing · exorcism · protection · forestall · repelling · safeguard · protective charm · fending · cover · armor · antidote · resisting · hamsa · shield · folk magic
- defensedefense, defending, protecting, protection, security
- defensive gesturesflinching, cowering, cringing, ducking, recoiling
- driving awayrepelling, banishing, forcing out, shooing, dispersing
- evil eyeevil eye, evil eye bead, evil eye charm, hamsa, hamsa hand
approach vs. repulsion
warding offattracting
Drawing toward oneself
drawing in · luring · beckoning · pulling in · summoning
off, guard, award, reward, ward, guardian, warden, wardrobe, rewarding