Dodge, n.
The act of evading by some skillful movement; a sudden starting aside; hence, an artful device to evade, deceive, or cheat; a cunning trick; an artifice. [Colloq.] Some, who have a taste for good living, have many harmless arts, by which they improve their banquet, and innocent dodges, if we may be permitted to use an excellent phrase that has become vernacular since the appearance of the last dictionaries. Thackeray.
2 other Webster entries under this spelling
Dodge, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Dodged; p. pr. & vb. n. Dodging.]
1. To start suddenly aside, as to avoid a blow or a missile; to shift place by a sudden start. Milton.
2. To evade a duty by low craft; to practice mean shifts; to use tricky devices; to play fast and loose; to quibble. Some dodging casuist with more craft than sincerity. Milton.
Dodge, v. t.
1. To evade by a sudden shift of place; to escape by starting aside; as, to dodge a blow aimed or a ball thrown.
2. Fig.: To evade by craft; as, to dodge a question; to dodge responsibility. [Colloq.] S. G. Goodrich.
3. To follow by dodging, or suddenly shifting from place to place. Coleridge.
Shades of meaning
Fernald has no entry of its own for dodge; he lists it under artifice.
He lists it without comment; the entries above explain its neighbors.