stonewall

American  

[stohn-wawl] / ˈstoʊnˌwɔl /

verb (used without object)

1. to engage in stonewalling.

2. British. filibuster.

3. Cricket. (of a batsman) to play a defensive game, as by persistently blocking the ball instead of batting it for distance and runs.

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verb (used with object)

1. Informal. to block, stall, or resist intentionally.

   lobbying efforts to stonewall passage of the legislation.

2. British. to obstruct (the passage of a legislative bill) in Parliament, especially by excessive or prolonged debate.

adjective

1. pertaining to or characteristic of stonewalling.

   a new round of stonewall tactics.

stonewall British  

/ ˌstəʊnˈwɔːl /

verb

1. (intr) cricket (of a batsman) to play defensively

2. to obstruct or hinder (parliamentary business)

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Other Word Forms

• stonewaller noun

Etymology

Origin of stonewall

v. and adj. use of noun phrase stone wall

Example Sentences

Her bio-father, Kwangho, meanwhile, spent five years searching for her whereabouts, being stonewalled by bureaucracy and finally finding a sympathetic insider to leak the information that led to his daughter.

From The Wall Street Journal

Both the army and the RSF have previously stonewalled negotiations brokered by the US and Saudi Arabia.

From Barron's

Lawyers for Kahn and Indyke said they hadn’t stonewalled discovery requests and have turned over hundreds of thousands of pages to private plaintiffs.

From The Wall Street Journal

On a series in the second quarter, he limited a swing pass to Isaac Guerendo to a one-yard gain, then stonewalled the 49ers running back at the line of scrimmage on the next play.

From Los Angeles Times

Ms Brownlie said "that makes it more frustrating" when her requests through the formal processes have been "stonewalled".

From BBC

Related Words

• rebuff