Choose the Right Synonym for thwart

Verb

frustrate, thwart, foil, baffle, balk mean to check or defeat another's plan or block achievement of a goal. frustrate implies making vain or ineffectual all efforts however vigorous or persistent. frustrated attempts at government reform thwart suggests frustration or checking by crossing or opposing. the army thwarted his attempt at a coup foil implies checking or defeating so as to discourage further effort. foiled by her parents, he stopped trying to see her baffle implies frustration by confusing or puzzling. baffled by the maze of rules and regulations balk suggests the interposing of obstacles or hindrances. officials felt that legal restrictions had balked their efforts to control crime

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Verb

Thwart and its synonyms "foil" and "frustrate" all suggest checking or defeating another's plan or preventing the achievement of a goal. "Foil" implies checking or defeating so as to discourage future efforts ("foiled by her parents, he stopped trying to see her"), while "frustrate" suggests making all efforts, however vigorous or persistent, futile or ineffectual ("frustrated attempts at government reform"). "Thwart" usually indicates frustration caused by opposition ("the army thwarted an attempted coup").

Examples of thwart in a Sentence

Verb She did all she could to thwart his plans. The army thwarted the attempt at a coup.

Recent Examples on the Web: Verb But now the department under Rosen has taken a step that Trump may see as an overt act intended to thwart one of his allies, opening it up to possible retaliation. — Maggie Haberman, BostonGlobe.com, "Justice Dept. asks judge to toss election lawsuit against Pence," 31 Dec. 2020 Members of Congress agreed this month on measures intended to thwart the Akademik Cherskiy and bury Nord Stream 2. — Brett Forrest, WSJ, "U.S., Russia Race to Outflank Each Other on Russian Pipeline," 29 Nov. 2020 Meanwhile, Isayama’s erstwhile protagonist is a genocidal maniac radicalized by trauma, and all of his former friends are cooperating to thwart him. — Shaan Amin, The New Republic, "Why Attack on Titan Is the Alt-Right’s Favorite Manga," 16 Nov. 2020 There were even multiple reports that President Trump tried to thwart the resolution on the Senate floor to appease Erdogan. — Stephan Pechdimaldji, National Review, "How the Armenian Genocide’s Legacy Explains a Conflict on Pause," 14 Nov. 2020 Progressives countered that the party didn’t take Sanders seriously and worked to thwart him. — Steve Peoples, chicagotribune.com, "How Joe Biden navigated pandemic politics to win the White House," 7 Nov. 2020 Progressives countered that the party didn't take Sanders seriously and worked to thwart him. — Steve Peoples , Bill Barrow, Star Tribune, "How Biden navigated pandemic politics to win the White House," 7 Nov. 2020 So far, more than 1,600 people have been let out on compassionate release since the start of the pandemic — many of them despite the bureau’s best efforts to thwart them. — NBC News, "Thousands of sick federal prisoners sought release as Covid-19 spread. Nearly all were denied.," 7 Oct. 2020 As previously planned, the series will feature reduced capacity, a seating plan to enforce social distancing and other measures intended to thwart the spread of COVID-19. — al, "Mobile Saenger movie series takes flight with ‘Airplane!’ Oct. 1," 23 Sep. 2020 Recent Examples on the Web: Noun Serving as captain of the maintop of the U.S.S. Pawnee in the attack upon Mathias Point, 26 June 1861, Williams told his men, while lying off in the boat, that every man must die on his thwart sooner than leave a man behind. — Drew Broach | Staff Writer, NOLA.com, "On Veterans Day, meet all 26 of Louisiana's Medal of Honor recipients," 10 Nov. 2020 Germany has previously had success with American intelligence information helping thwart plots, most notably in 2007 in stopping a plan to bomb the U.S. Air Force's Ramstein Air Base in southern Germany. — David Rising, Fox News, "German teenager arrested in gay club bomb attack plan," 13 Sep. 2018 The center yoke thwart is perfectly balanced for one-person portages. — The Editors, Outside Online, "REI Is Having an Huge Sale on Water Sports Gear," 18 May 2018

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