Question

eschew verb "Eschew" derives from the Anglo-French verb "eschiver" and is akin to the Old High German verb "sciuhen" ("to frighten off"), an ancestor of our word "shy." In his famous dictionary of 1755 Dr. Samuel Johnson characterized "eschew" as "almost obsolete." History has proven that the great lexicographer was wrong on that call, however. William Thackeray found "eschew" alive enough to use it almost one hundred years later in his classic novel Vanity Fair: "He has already eschewed green coats, red neckcloths, and other worldly ornaments." The word swelled in usage in English during the 19th and 20th centuries and is now common enough to be included even in small paperback dictionaries. : to avoid habitually especially on moral or practical grounds

Accepted Answer

May 30, 2012 ess-CHOO The keynote speakers were two former gang members who now eschew violence.  "The women least likely to have epidurals, said Wilson, are those who arrive at the hospital in the nick of time and those determined to eschew drugs." - From an article by Leslie Mann in the Chicago Tribune, April 25, 2012

Word	eschew
Date	May 30, 2012
Type	verb
Syllables	ess-CHOO
Etymology	"Eschew" derives from the Anglo-French verb "eschiver" and is akin to the Old High German verb "sciuhen" ("to frighten off"), an ancestor of our word "shy." In his famous dictionary of 1755 Dr. Samuel Johnson characterized "eschew" as "almost obsolete." History has proven that the great lexicographer was wrong on that call, however. William Thackeray found "eschew" alive enough to use it almost one hundred years later in his classic novel Vanity Fair: "He has already eschewed green coats, red neckcloths, and other worldly ornaments." The word swelled in usage in English during the 19th and 20th centuries and is now common enough to be included even in small paperback dictionaries.
Examples	The keynote speakers were two former gang members who now eschew violence. "The women least likely to have epidurals, said Wilson, are those who arrive at the hospital in the nick of time and those determined to eschew drugs." - From an article by Leslie Mann in the Chicago Tribune, April 25, 2012
Definition	: to avoid habitually especially on moral or practical grounds

Eschew Verb Word Ess Choo Derives Anglo French Eschiver Akin