stymie

verb sty·mie \ ˈstī-mē \

Updated on: 17 Apr 2018

Definition of stymie

stymied; stymieing

transitive verb

: to present an obstacle to : stand in the way of

stymied by red tape

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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 of stymie from the Web

Current prohibitions have stymied research at Veterans Affairs to evaluate the drug's efficacy in treating post-traumatic stress and physical pain as the result of military service, then-VA Secretary David Shulkin said earlier this year.

— the washington post, NOLA.com, "John Boehner was a longtime opponent of marijuana reform. Here's what changed his mind," 11 Apr. 2018
On the diplomatic front, Moscow and Washington stymied attempts by each other in the U.N. Security Council on Tuesday to set up international investigations into chemical weapons attacks in Syria.

— author: tom perry, dahlia nehme, Anchorage Daily News, "Russia warns that any U.S. missiles fired at Syria will be shot down," 11 Apr. 2018
The Royals bullpen, which started the season on a sour note by coughing up 13 runs in the first three games, also stymied the Indians.

— maria torres, kansascity, "Lucas Duda, Ian Kennedy come through in Royals' 1-0 win over Indians | The Kansas City Star," 7 Apr. 2018
The Saints stymied all of their scoring chances in the final moments, both in the run of play and on free position opportunities, to secure the one-goal triumph.

— kyle stackpole, Howard County Times, "Glenelg girls lacrosse suffers one-goal defeat against nationally ranked foe," 4 Apr. 2018
Trade wars and other forms of protectionism stymie innovation.

— The Economist, "A good, clean fightGlobal powers need to take the geopolitics out of energy," 15 Mar. 2018
From Priests' vantage point, this arresting debut album was endlessly delayed, stymied for months by frustrations both creative and financial.

— zach schonfeld, Newsweek, "The 17 Best Albums of 2017: Kendrick Lamar, Lorde and Other Favorites," 22 Dec. 2017
Related stories from Fort Worth Star Telegram Astros' four-man outfield stymies Joey Gallo — but don't expect him to bunt Cole Hamels' start isn't the problem, his situation is MLB team in San Antonio?

— stefan stevenson, star-telegram, "Astros' Justin Verlander keeps Rangers' bats down on Opening Day | Fort Worth Star-Telegram," 29 Mar. 2018
Starting in the 1970s, however, the Court began systematically stymieing all congressional efforts to limit campaign expenditures.

— win mccormack, The New Republic, "How should we understand the history of political corruption in America?," 28 Mar. 2018

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

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.