Avoidaunce

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. An archaic spelling for the act of keeping clear of something unwanted ; a legal annulment of a document or the removal of someone from an office
2. Old form meaning the process of steering clear of something ; a formal nullification of a deed or the ejection of a person from a post
3. Early spelling denoting deliberate keeping away from a thing ; in law, the voiding of an instrument or the dismissal of an official from their position

Etymology: "Avoidaunce" is simply an older spelling of "avoidance", and it shows the word's construction plainly. It joins "avoid", borrowed into Middle English from Old French "esvuidier", meaning to empty out or clear away, with the suffix "-ance", which turns a verb into a noun of action or state. An avoidance is therefore the act or condition of keeping clear of something. The spelling itself records how the word was pronounced and written in the Middle English period, when spelling was far less fixed than it is today. The "-aunce" ending reflects the French-influenced form of the suffix, which later settled into the modern "-ance". The root meaning, emptying a space so that nothing remains in it, is still visible in the sense of keeping oneself clear of a thing.