bypass

Or by-pass

[bahy-pas, -pahs]

noun

1. a road enabling motorists to avoid a city or other heavy traffic points or to drive around an obstruction.

2. a secondary pipe or other channel connected with a main passage, as for conducting a liquid or gas around a fixture, pipe, or appliance.

3. Electricity.,  shunt.

4. a surgical procedure in which a diseased or obstructed hollow organ is temporarily or permanently circumvented.

verb (used with object)

bypassed , bypast, bypassed, bypast, bypassing. .

1. to avoid (an obstruction, city, etc.) by following a bypass.

2. to cause (fluid or gas) to follow a secondary pipe or bypass.

3. to neglect to consult or to ignore the opinion or decision of.

   He bypassed the foreman and took his grievance straight to the owner.

bypass

/ ˈbaɪˌpɑːs /

noun

1. a main road built to avoid a city or other congested area

2. any system of pipes or conduits for redirecting the flow of a liquid

3. a means of redirecting the flow of a substance around an appliance through which it would otherwise pass

4. surgery

   1. the redirection of blood flow, either to avoid a diseased blood vessel or in order to perform heart surgery See coronary bypass

   2. ( as modifier )

      bypass surgery

5. electronics

   1. an electrical circuit, esp one containing a capacitor, connected in parallel around one or more components, providing an alternative path for certain frequencies

   2. ( as modifier )

      a bypass capacitor

verb

1. to go around or avoid (a city, obstruction, problem, etc)

2. to cause (traffic, fluid, etc) to go through a bypass

3. to proceed without reference to (regulations, a superior, etc); get round; avoid

bypass

1. A passage created surgically to divert the flow of blood or other bodily fluid or to circumvent an obstructed or diseased organ.

Other Word Forms

• bypasser noun
• by-passer noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of bypass¹

1840–50; apparently back formation from by-passage; by (adj.), passage ¹

Example Sentences

"Features like tagging and resharing can bypass these protections, allowing content to spread beyond the intended audience even from 'private' accounts."

From BBC

He said they must also end efforts to bypass negotiations by pursuing legal cases against Israel at international courts.

From BBC

In his first public comments about his health issues, Angels manager Ron Washington says he is recovering from quadruple bypass heart surgery.

From Los Angeles Times

It’s unclear if Abbott, who succeeded Perry, supported the move by Bondi and Paxton to bypass the legislative process and kill the law.

From Salon

On the route of the old Great North Road, it was bypassed by the modern A1 in the 1970s, and residents thought they had seen the back of congestion.

From BBC

Related Words

• circumvent 
• ignore 
• neglect 
• omit 
• sidestep 
• skirt