Select the most appropriate synonym of the given word.

Avert

Prevent

The most appropriate synonym of the given word Avert is Prevent.

• Avert means to turn away or aside.
• Prevent means to stop something from happening.

The two words are similar in that they both suggest the idea of stopping something from happening. However, the word avert has a more specific meaning, as it refers to turning away or aside from something. The word prevent has a more general meaning, and can be used to refer to the stopping of anything from happening.

In the sentence "The president averted a war by negotiating a peace treaty," the speaker is not just saying that the president stopped a war from happening, but that the president also turned away from the possibility of war. Therefore, the word "prevent" is the most appropriate synonym for the word "avert" in this context.

The other words on the list are not as appropriate synonyms for avert. The word permit means to allow something to happen. The word confront means to face something or someone head-on. The word face means to meet something or someone head-on. These words do not convey the same sense of stopping something from happening as the word avert.