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Golf was being played in Scotland as early as the 15th century, but it wasn't until the 19th century that the sport really caught on in England and North America. It was also in the 19th century that the word stymie entered English as a noun referring to a golfing situation in which one player's ball lies between another ball and the hole on the putting green, thereby blocking the line of play. Later, stymie came to be used as a verb meaning "to bring into the position of, or impede by, a stymie." By the early 20th century, the verb was being applied in similarly vexing non-golf contexts.
Synonyms
Examples of stymie in a Sentence
Kristian Winfield, New York Daily News, 26 Jan. 2025
Red tape, budget shortfalls and government inaction repeatedly stymied plans for water system improvements — including some that specifically cited the need to boost firefighting capacity.
—Connor Sheets, Los Angeles Times, 24 Jan. 2025
Losing trust in your workforce can stymie progress, dismantle collaboration and lead to a toxic work environment.
—Troy Batterberry, Forbes, 24 Jan. 2025
The latter of those Trump has stymied this week by ordering the suspension of new federal offshore wind leasing, favoring oil, gas and coal.
—Gordon G. Chang, Newsweek, 24 Jan. 2025
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Dictionary Entries Near stymie
Cite this Entry
“Stymie.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stymie. Accessed 2 Feb. 2025.
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stymie
verb
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