stumbling block
noun
an obstacle or hindrance to progress, belief, or understanding.
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Nearby words
stultify, stum, stumble, stumble across, stumblebum, stumbling block, stumer, stump, stump bed, stump cancer, stump farm
Origin of stumbling block
First recorded in 1580–90
SYNONYMS FOR stumbling block
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for stumbling block
British Dictionary definitions for stumbling block
stumbling block
noun
any impediment or obstacle
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Idioms and Phrases with stumbling block
stumbling block
A hindrance or obstacle, as in His lack of a degree is a real stumbling block to his advancement. This term originally meant “a tree stump over which one trips.” Its figurative use dates from the early 1500s.
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.