Avoidance \A*void"ance\, n.

1. The act of annulling; annulment.

2. The act of becoming vacant, or the state of being vacant; -- specifically used for the state of a benefice becoming void by the death, deprivation, or resignation of the incumbent.

Wolsey, . . . on every avoidance of St. Peter's chair, was sitting down therein, when suddenly some one or other clapped in before him. --Fuller.

3. A dismissing or a quitting; removal; withdrawal.

4. The act of avoiding or shunning; keeping clear of. ``The avoidance of pain.'' --Beattie.

5. The courts by which anything is carried off.

Avoidances and drainings of water. --Bacon.

Source: Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)