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stymie

or sty·my, sti·my

[ stahy-mee ]
/ ˈstaɪ mi /
||
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noun

Golf. (on a putting green) an instance of a ball's lying on a direct line between the cup and the ball of an opponent about to putt.
a situation or problem presenting such difficulties as to discourage or defeat any attempt to deal with or resolve it.

verb (used with object), sty·mied, sty·mie·ing.

to hinder, block, or thwart.

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RELATED WORDS

obstruct, thwart, stonewall, foil, stall, impede, crimp, mystify, prevent, cramp, stump, nonplus, defeat, pigeonhole, confound, corner, crab, shelve, balk, puzzle

Nearby words

  1. stylopize,
  2. stylopodium,
  3. stylops,
  4. stylostixis,
  5. stylus,
  6. stymphalian birds,
  7. stymy,
  8. stype,
  9. stypsis,
  10. styptic

Origin of stymie

First recorded in 1855–60; origin uncertain
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for stymie

British Dictionary definitions for stymie

stymie

stymy

/ (ˈstaɪmɪ) /

verb -mies, -mieing, -mied, -mies, -mying or -mied (tr; often passive)

to hinder or thwart
golf to impede with a stymie

noun plural -mies

golf (formerly) a situation on the green in which an opponent's ball is blocking the line between the hole and the ball about to be played: an obstructing ball may now be lifted and replaced by a marker
a situation of obstruction

Word Origin for stymie

C19: of uncertain origin
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
Word Origin and History for stymie

stymie

1834, (n.), "condition in which an opponent's golf ball blocks the hole," perhaps from Scottish stymie "person who sees poorly," from stime "the least bit" (c.1300), of uncertain origin (Icelandic cognate skima is attested from c.1685). The verb, in golf, is from 1857; general sense of "block, hinder, thwart" is from 1902.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper