obviate
ob·vi·ate/ˈab.viˌeɪt/verb, noun, adjective
obviate is spelled O-B-V-I-A-T-E: 7 letters and 3 syllables (ob·vi·ate). It appears about once in every 8 million words in written English, the 83,271st most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, obviate means “To anticipate and prevent or bypass (something which would otherwise have been necessary or required); to render (something) unnecessary” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in obviate?
| Letters | 7: O-B-V-I-A-T-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: ob·vi·ate |
| In writing | about once in every 8 million words; the 83,271st most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is obviate?
Obviate appears about once in every 8 million words in written English, the 83,271st most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce obviate?
- UK /ˈɒb.viˌeɪt/
- US /ˈab.viˌeɪt/
Obviate has 3 syllables, split ob·vi·ate in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-obviate.wav, En-us-obviate.oga, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of obviate
- obviates present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- obviating participle, present
- obviated participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does obviate mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To anticipate and prevent or bypass (something which would otherwise have been necessary or required); to render (something) unnecessary.
- 2
To avoid (a future problem or difficult situation).
noun
- 1
Synonym of obviative.
adjective
- 1
Synonym of obviative.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Obviate in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense to bypass a requirement:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | rendre superflu, éviter |
| German | überflüssig machen, umgehen |
| Portuguese | obviar |
| Spanish | obviar |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does obviate come from?
First attested in 1567; borrowed from Latin obviātus, perfect passive participle of obviō (“to block, to hinder”), see -ate (verb-forming suffix).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).