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dodge (dŏj)
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v. dodged, dodg·ing, dodg·es
v.tr.
1. To avoid (a blow, for example) by moving or shifting quickly aside.
2. To evade (an obligation, for example) by cunning, trickery, or deceit: kept dodging the reporter's questions.
3. To blunt or reduce the intensity of (a section of a photograph) by shading during the printing process.
v.intr.
1. To move aside or in a given direction by shifting or twisting suddenly: The child dodged through the crowd.
2. To evade something by cunning, trickery, or deceit.
n.
1. The act of dodging: made a dodge to the left.
2. A cunning or deceitful act intended to evade something or trick someone: a tax dodge. See Synonyms at wile.

[Origin unknown.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 
Dodge (dŏj), Mary Elizabeth Mapes 1831-1905.
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American editor and writer best known for her children's classic Hans Brinker, or the Silver Skates (1865).

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition copyright ©2022 by HarperCollins Publishers. All rights reserved.
 

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

    Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

    Indo-European Roots

    Semitic Roots

    The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.