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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
Michael Schuman, The Atlantic, 1 Dec. 2025
The investigation found patients are frequently stymied in efforts to get their insurers to provide appropriate home ventilators.
—Jordan Rau, NPR, 29 Nov. 2025
At first, the army was stymied.
—Patrick Springer, Twin Cities, 26 Nov. 2025
Pedro Hernandez, 64, was convicted in 2017 of kidnapping and murdering Etan — a crime that struck terror into the hearts of parents in New York and across the country and stymied the police for decades.
—Adam Reiss, NBC news, 25 Nov. 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 6 Dec. 2025.
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stymie
verb
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