What does "stave off" mean?

To delay or prevent something unpleasant Used for temporarily preventing something inevitable.

How do you use "stave off" in a sentence?

She had some coffee to stave off tiredness. Measures to stave off a recession. They're trying to stave off bankruptcy.

Phrasal Verb BritishAmericanAustralian ★★★☆☆ Moderate Neutral

Meaning: To delay or prevent something unpleasant

阻止或推迟不愉快的事情发生

Retrasar o prevenir algo desagradable

（好ましくないことを）食い止める、回避する

좋지 않은 일을 막다, 피하다

Used for temporarily preventing something inevitable.

用于暂时阻止不可避免的事情。

Se usa para prevenir temporalmente algo inevitable.

避けられないことを一時的に防ぐ際に使う。

피할 수 없는 일을 일시적으로 막거나 늦추는 데 쓰인다.

Base verb: stave

Particle: off

Separable: Yes — the object can go between the verb and particle

She had some coffee to stave off tiredness.
她喝了点咖啡来抵抗困意
Tomó café para combatir el cansancio
眠気を紛らわすためにコーヒーを飲んだ
졸음을 쫓기 위해 커피를 마셨다.
Measures to stave off a recession.
防止经济衰退的措施
Medidas para evitar una recesión
不況を回避するための対策
경기 침체를 막기 위한 대책.
They're trying to stave off bankruptcy.
他们正试图避免破产
Están intentando evitar la quiebra
彼らは破産を食い止めようとしている
그들은 파산을 막으려 하고 있다.

Context: prevention, delay, survival

Tone: urgent

From using a staff or stave to keep something at bay.

Era: Modern

Generation: All ages

Social background: Universal