stymie

verb

sty·​mie ˈstī-mē How to pronounce stymie (audio)
stymied; stymieing

transitive verb

: to present an obstacle to : stand in the way of
stymied by red tape

Did you know?

Golf was being played in Scotland as early as the 15th century, but it wasn't until the 19th century that the sport really caught on in England and North America. It was also in the 19th century that the word stymie entered English as a noun referring to a golfing situation in which one player's ball lies between another ball and the hole on the putting green, thereby blocking the line of play. Later, stymie came to be used as a verb meaning "to bring into the position of, or impede by, a stymie." By the early 20th century, the verb was being applied in similarly vexing non-golf contexts.

Examples of stymie in a Sentence

Progress on the project has been stymied by lack of money. the raging blizzard stymied the rescuers' attempts to find the stranded mountain climbers
Recent Examples on the Web More accurately, the pace of testing the U.S. achieved in the 1950s and 1960s is now stymied by red tape and bureaucracy. Sassie Duggleby, Fortune, 15 Mar. 2024 How are those counties trying to stymie those projects? Dana Taylor, USA TODAY, 23 Feb. 2024 The second article accuses Mayorkas of breaching the public trust by misrepresenting the state of the border and stymieing congressional efforts to investigate him. Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 14 Feb. 2024 Appointed by President Jovenel Moïse days before Moïse’s still-unsolved assassination in 2021, Henry was due to leave office on Wednesday, but has so far successfully stymied a political transition. Amanda Coletta, Washington Post, 11 Feb. 2024 The second article accuses Mr. Mayorkas of breaching the public trust by misrepresenting the state of the border, and stymieing congressional efforts to investigate him. Karoun Demirjian, New York Times, 6 Feb. 2024 By refusing to change with the times, politicians may be helping local cattle ranchers in the short term, but in the long run their state may become economically stymied. TIME, 6 Feb. 2024 Apple is doing this in the name of compliance with the new Digital Markets Act antitrust law, but, as the Financial Times points out, the move also stymies developers who might use web apps to bypass Apple’s 30% commission on App Store purchases. David Meyer, Fortune, 27 Feb. 2024 Yet 10 years on, an industrywide push to rule out a similar case has been stymied by bureaucracy, financial pressure, and a debate about who should have ultimate control of the cockpit, according to years of regulatory amendments chronicling the process. Tribune News Service, The Mercury News, 26 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'stymie.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Scots stimie, stymie to obstruct a golf shot by interposition of the opponent's ball

First Known Use

1902, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of stymie was in 1902

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Dictionary Entries Near stymie

Cite this Entry

“Stymie.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stymie. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

stymie

verb
sty·​mie ˈstī-mē How to pronounce stymie (audio)
stymied; stymieing
: to present an obstacle to : stand in the way of
an unexpected snowstorm stymied travelers' plans

More from Merriam-Webster on stymie

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