ward off vs stave off

ward off and stave off both are verbs.

Word	Noun	Adjective	Verb	Adverb
ward off	No	No	Yes	No
stave off	No	No	Yes	No

As verbs, ward off and stave off are synonyms defined as:

ward off and stave off: prevent the occurrence of; prevent from happening; to protect from or to keep away anything undesirable; to ward off

Other synonyms of ward off include avert, avoid, debar, deflect, fend off, forefend, forfend, head off, obviate.

ward off (verb)	stave off (verb)
avert, turn away, or repel	prevent the occurrence of; prevent from happening; to protect from or to keep away anything undesirable; to ward off
prevent the occurrence of; prevent from happening; to protect from or to keep away anything undesirable; to ward off