averse to

idiom

: having a clear dislike of (something) : strongly opposed to (something)
He seems to be averse to exercise.
No one is more averse to borrowing money than he is.
often used in negative statements to mean willing to
She is not averse to taking chances.

Examples of averse to in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Millennials, those roughly 28 to 43 years old, are generally thought to be more averse to debt and better savers than earlier cohorts such as Gen X (44 to 59 years old) and baby boomers (60 to 78). Don Lee, Los Angeles Times, 24 May 2024 Israel has been averse to agreeing to discuss an end to the war before Hamas has been defeated and the remaining hostages are released from captivity. Cnn.com Wire Service, The Mercury News, 21 May 2024 The United States has not been averse to changing boundaries by force. Armstrong Williams, Baltimore Sun, 24 Mar. 2024 Over four weeks of testimony, prosecutors have carefully built a portrait of Mr. Trump as someone who hates bad publicity, is averse to putting orders in writing, and is detail-oriented to a fault. Peter Grier, The Christian Science Monitor, 13 May 2024 Among the stunts The Fall Guy wraps its romantic comedy around are high falls (those averse to heights may be uncomfortable watching Gosling swing from a helicopter), hand-to-hand combat and a world-record-breaking vehicular stunt involving a Jeep’s 8.5 cannon rolls, or head-over-head flips. Jack Smart, Peoplemag, 3 May 2024 Even the idea that Apple would flirt with betting is curious, because the company has traditionally been pretty averse to anything that could be construed as a vice. Jacob Stern, The Atlantic, 2 Mar. 2024 Even knowing baseball is historically averse to going against the grain, Semerano’s progress with the neutral wrist has left Mueller screaming into the void. Danny Emerman, The Mercury News, 17 Feb. 2024 Traditionally pro-gun respondents did not have a preference for gun-owning neighbors, and all respondents were averse to their neighbors owning AR-15s. Gabrielle Lamarr Lemee, Los Angeles Times, 11 Apr. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'averse to.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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Cite this Entry

“Averse to.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/averse%20to. Accessed 5 Jun. 2024.

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