obstruct

verb ob·struct \ əb-ˈstrəkt , äb- \

Definition of obstruct

transitive verb

1 : to block or close up by an obstacle

A piece of food obstructed his airway.

The road was obstructed by a fallen tree.

2 : to hinder from passage, action, or operation : impede

Constant interruptions obstruct our progress.

was charged with obstructing justice by lying to investigators

3 : to cut off from sight

A wall obstructs the view.

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obstructive

play \əb-ˈstrək-tiv, äb-\ adjective or noun

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obstructiveness

noun

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obstructor

play \əb-ˈstrək-tər, äb-\ noun

See obstruct defined for English-language learners

See obstruct defined for kids

Examples of obstruct in a Sentence

A large tree obstructed the road.
A piece of food obstructed his airway and caused him to stop breathing.
She was charged with obstructing police.
She was charged with obstructing justice by lying to investigators.

Recent Examples of obstruct from the Web

Managers did not file charges against the boys due to the value of the thefts, but one boy will be filed on in juvenile court for obstructing official business.

— andy attina / cleveland.com, cleveland.com, "Suspect shows gun during robbery at Foot Locker: South Euclid Police Blotter," 1 Nov. 2017
Two of the four remaining defendants were retried and acquitted, and two others pleaded guilty last week to obstructing a court order.

— author: john l. smith, Alaska Dispatch News, "Nevada rancher Cliven Bundy goes on trial for leading 2014 armed standoff," 30 Oct. 2017
In addition to the question of Russian election meddling and possible collusion, Mueller also is believed to be investigating whether Trump obstructed an FBI investigation into the matter by firing former FBI Director James B. Comey.

— alex wigglesworth, latimes.com, "Trump laments 'very little reporting' on economic growth," 28 Oct. 2017
The American College of Emergency Physicians cautions against ill-fitting clothes and masks that may obstruct vision.

— puja bhattacharjee, CNN, "Beware these Halloween safety ghouls," 26 Oct. 2017
If that were done at Archie Carr, the resulting thicket of stakes could obstruct turtles from moving around, Santulli said.

— kevin spear, OrlandoSentinel.com, "Hurricane Irma destroys record number of turtle nests on Central Florida coast," 23 Oct. 2017
The city failed to explain how the disclosure of most of the police report's contents would interfere with or obstruct the investigation, Assistant Attorney General Valerie Calhoun said in a letter to the News-Sun and city of Waukegan.

— emily k. coleman, Lake County News-Sun, "AG: Waukegan violated law in denying FOIA request about District 60 superintendent's missing file," 18 Sep. 2017
The independent counsel obtained a series of peripheral convictions, mostly for obstructing Congress’s Iran-Contra investigation in various ways.

— c. boyden gray, WSJ, "Mueller Can Avoid an Iran-Contra Repeat," 7 Aug. 2017
Krajnc was charged with causing mischief—in this case, a criminal offense related to obstructing or interfering with the legal operation of property.

— brigit katz, Smithsonian, "Activist Will Not Be Jailed for Giving Water to Pigs," 5 May 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'obstruct.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of obstruct

Latin obstructus, past participle of obstruere, from ob- in the way + struere to build, heap up — more at ob-, strew

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1590

See Words from the same year

obstruct Synonyms

Phrases

cramp one's style, give a hard time;

Synonym Discussion of obstruct

hinder, impede, obstruct, block mean to interfere with the activity or progress of. hinder stresses causing harmful or annoying delay or interference with progress.

- rain hindered the climb

impede implies making forward progress difficult by clogging, hampering, or fettering.

- tight clothing that impedes movement

obstruct implies interfering with something in motion or in progress by the sometimes intentional placing of obstacles in the way.

- the view was obstructed by billboards

block implies complete obstruction to passage or progress.

- a landslide blocked the road

OBSTRUCT Defined for English Language Learners

obstruct

verb

Definition of obstruct for English Language Learners

: to block (something, such as a pipe or street) so that things cannot move through easily
: to slow or block the movement, progress, or action of (something or someone)
: to be in front of (something) : to make (something) difficult to see

OBSTRUCT Defined for Kids

obstruct

verb ob·struct \ əb-ˈstrəkt \

Definition of obstruct for Students

obstructed; obstructing

1 : to block or make passage through difficult

A fallen tree is obstructing the road.

2 : to be or come in the way of : hinder

She was uncooperative and obstructed the investigation.

3 : to make (something) difficult to see The new building obstructs their view of the ocean.

Word Root of obstruct

The Latin word struere, meaning “to build,” and its form structus give us the root struct. Words from the Latin struere have something to do with building. A structure is something that was built, such as a house. To construct is to build by combining parts together. To obstruct is to build an obstacle that blocks a passage or path. Destruction is the process of taking apart something that was built.