circumvent the rules

Meaning

To find a way around laws, regulations, or guidelines without directly breaking them, often by exploiting loopholes. It carries a slightly negative or suspicious connotation, suggesting that someone is acting sneakily or dishonorably to avoid restrictions.

Examples

• Some companies use offshore accounts to circumvent the rules regarding domestic corporate tax.

  Some companies use offshore accounts to circumvent the rules regarding domestic corporate tax.

• We must ensure that our employees do not attempt to circumvent the rules to meet their sales quotas.

  We must ensure that our employees do not attempt to circumvent the rules to meet their sales quotas.

• The compliance team was established to prevent attempts to circumvent the rules.

  The compliance team was established to prevent attempts to circumvent the rules.

• They managed to circumvent the rules by exploiting a minor legal loophole in the contract.

  They managed to circumvent the rules by exploiting a minor legal loophole in the contract.

• Trying to circumvent the rules will only lead to severe regulatory penalties in the long run.

  Trying to circumvent the rules will only lead to severe regulatory penalties in the long run.

Common Mistakes

• ✗ They tried to circumvent around the rules.

  ✓ They tried to circumvent the rules.

  'Circumvent' already means 'to go around' (from Latin 'circum' + 'venire'). Adding 'around' is redundant and grammatically incorrect.

• ✗ We need to circumvent the laws of the company.

  ✓ We need to circumvent the rules of the company.

  While 'circumvent the law' is correct, internal company policies are referred to as 'rules' or 'regulations', making 'circumvent the rules' the standard collocation.

Related Expressions

Practice

• Technological advancements often allow startups to ___ before new laws are written.

  💡 To find a way around established guidelines or restrictions.

  Show answer

  circumvent the rules

• The auditor discovered that several departments had managed to ___.

  💡 Cleverly avoiding or bypassing the official procedures.

  Show answer

  circumvent the rules