obstacle course
Americannoun
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a military training area having obstacles, as hurdles, ditches, and walls, that must be surmounted or crossed in succession.
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Informal. an event, situation, course of action, or the like that presents many challenges or difficulties.
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Turn right, as the map tells you to do, and you’ll encounter decaying sidewalks, with cracked and buckled concrete that turns a modest uphill walk into an obstacle course.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 25, 2026
None of these are true gaming machines, but I still enjoyed playing the “Obby But You’re On a Bike” obstacle course and the space exploration-gone-wrong adventure “Beyond the Dark.”
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 14, 2026
But for the 35 residents of Kapisillit, getting to that care is an obstacle course.
From Barron's • Feb. 23, 2026
The first element in the men's and women's sprints sees athletes run uphill with skis on their boots through an obstacle course that includes two sets of diamonds that competitors have to negotiate around.
From BBC • Feb. 19, 2026
At the sound of their cue, the chickens began another round of the obstacle course.
From "The Interrupted Tale" by Maryrose Wood
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
