stymie

[ stahy-mee ]
See synonyms for: stymiestymiedstymies on Thesaurus.com

verb (used with object),sty·mied, sty·mie·ing.
  1. to hinder, block, or thwart.

noun
  1. a situation or problem presenting such difficulties as to discourage or defeat any attempt to deal with or resolve it.

  2. 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.

Origin of stymie

1
First recorded in 1855–60; origin uncertain
  • Sometimes sty·my .

Other words for stymie

Words Nearby stymie

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use stymie in a sentence

  • Well, the first thing to be done is to get rid of Loudon's stymie with the authorities.

    Huntingtower | John Buchan
  • He wished frantically that he could have figured out a way to stymie the chase, but starships were not built to be sabotaged.

    The Sex Life of the Gods | Michael Knerr
  • He may dodge a stymie or circumvent an inconvenient piece of the green over which, without the cut, the ball would have to travel.

  • The common method of playing a stymie is by pitching your ball over that of your opponent, but this is not always possible.

  • The object is to knock the stymie right away over the hole, and to follow through with your own and drop in.

British Dictionary definitions for stymie

stymie

stymy

/ (ˈstaɪmɪ) /


verb-mies, -mieing, -mied, -mies, -mying or -mied (tr; often passive)
  1. to hinder or thwart

  2. golf to impede with a stymie

nounplural -mies
  1. 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

  2. a situation of obstruction

Origin of stymie

1
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