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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
Gabe Whisnant, MSNBC Newsweek, 8 Sep. 2025
Some data types can be encrypted randomly, obfuscating enough of the data to stymie hackers—such as using only the last four digits of your credit to confirm your purchase identity.
—Srinivas Shekar, Forbes.com, 8 Sep. 2025
Chair massage, familiar to us from nail salons, Central Park, and airports, also takes place clothed, on a special padded chair—conditions that seemed poised to stymie efforts at showmanship.
—Sarah Larson, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
Later, the Royals bullpen combined to stymie the Twins.
—Jaylon Thompson, Kansas City Star, 6 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for stymie
Cite this Entry
“Stymie.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stymie. Accessed 11 Sep. 2025.
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stymie
verb
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