Merriam-Webster's Word Central

October 28, 2009

obviate (verb): \AHB-vee-ayt\
What does it mean?: : to anticipate and take care of beforehand
How do you use it?: Claire repaired the part of her backpack that had become weak through wear and tear in order to obviate the danger of losing any of her books or papers..
Are you a word wiz?: Which one of these sentences do you think uses "obviate" correctly?

A. Jamal's new job obviates him to work 20 hours a week and one weekend a month.

B. For their birthday, the twins were given a telescope that would allow them to obviate the stars and planets in the night sky.

C. A new ad campaign is urging automobile riders to obviate the risk of serious injury by buckling up.

D. When he began to compose music at the age of five, it became obviate that Wolfgang Mozart possessed extraordinary talent.

Sentence D can be the first choice to go, since it uses the verb "obviate" in place of the adjective "obvious," which means "easily seen or understood." Ramon's job in Sentence A may either "obligate" or "oblige," in other words, force him to put in a certain number of hours. The telescope in Sentence B enables the twins to gather scientific information about heavenly bodies by "observing" them. We are then left with Sentence C, and the precaution that wise drivers and passengers take against injuries when they fasten their seat belts.

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