They back down and leave, trying to avoid a confrontation.

Better to avoid such a confrontation, if at all possible.

He had never been one to avoid confrontation with death.

He'd done everything he knew how to avoid a confrontation, and now there was no way out.

There would be no way now for the women to avoid a confrontation!

In fact, why don't you tell her yourself so that she and I can avoid a confrontation.

She probably wanted to avoid confrontation by not telling me until after she'd gone.

But there seemed no way that he could avoid such a confrontation now.

He said that "to avoid a physical confrontation I have asked the board not to go in."

But in this case, it is best to avoid confrontation.