steer clear

Syllable breakdown

Dictionary meaning

an idiom meaning to deliberately avoid a person, place, topic, or situation, derived from the nautical practice of steering a vessel well away from a hazard such as a reef, shoal, or rocky coastline to ensure a safe margin; to steer clear is not merely to avoid collision but to maintain a prudent distance that accounts for currents, wind, and the unpredictability of the hazard; in everyday usage the phrase advises active avoidance rather than passive non-encounter — you steer clear of someone you know to be dangerous, a topic you know to be contentious, or a situation you have been warned about; the phrase implies informed and deliberate navigation based on prior knowledge of the risk