avert
uh-VURTverbMeaning to turn away; to keep something bad from happening
Memory hook A-VERT: TURN AWAY from trouble. Captain Sven sees the rock ahead and turns the wheel hard; by turning away in time, he averts a crash.
Pip averted his eyes so he would not spoil the surprise in the gift bag.
In context The crew worked through the night to patch the leaking dam, and their effort averted a flood that would have swamped the whole valley.
Similar prevent, ward off, avoid, turn away
Opposite cause, invite
From Latin avertere, “to turn away”: ab (away) + vertere (to turn).