give something a miss

give something a miss — 慣用語

1. to decide not to go to an event, not to take part in an activity, or not to use

1.慣用語B2
釋義

避開；跳過

決定不去做或參加某件事

to decide not to go to an event, not to take part in an activity, or not to use something that you would normally do or use, especially because you do not want to or because it is inconvenient.

例句

Kwame decided to give the staff party a miss because he felt completely exhausted.

Kwame 決定不參加員工派對，因為他覺得已經累壞了。

collocation: decide to give [something] a miss

Mei-Ling had a bad headache, so she gave the morning lecture a miss.

Mei-Ling 頭很痛，所以她沒去上早上的課。

pattern: give + [noun phrase] + a miss

同義詞
  • skip

    neutral, common in both British and American English ('I skipped the party')

  • give something a pass

    American English equivalent, slightly more formal ('I gave the meeting a pass')

  • steer clear of

    more about avoiding a person, place, or thing that you consider unpleasant or risky ('I steered clear of the buffet')

反義詞
  • attend

    the opposite meaning — to go to an event ('I decided to attend after all')

  • join in

    informal opposite — to take part ('Everyone joined in the karaoke')

文法句型

give + [something] + a miss

give + [pronoun] + a miss

用法筆記

This is a British English idiom used mainly in informal conversation. The thing you avoid is placed between 'give' and 'a miss': give + thing + a miss. With a pronoun, the structure is 'give it/them a miss' — do NOT say 'give a miss to it'. Common with modal verbs such as 'will', 'might', 'can', and with 'decide to'.

常見錯誤

❌I gave a miss to the party.
✅I gave the party a miss.
💡The object must go between 'give' and 'a miss', not after 'to'.
❌I gave it a pass.
✅I gave it a miss.
💡'miss' is the fixed word in this idiom, not 'pass' (though American English has 'give something a pass').