Stymie

Pronunciation

• IPA: /ˈstaɪmi/
• Rhymes: -aɪmi

Alternative forms

• stimy, stymy

Origin

Full definition of stymie

Noun

1. An obstacle or obstruction.
2. (golf) A situation where an opponent's ball is directly in the way of one's own ball and the hole, on the putting green.

Verb

1. To thwart or stump; to cause to fail or to leave hopelessly puzzled, confused, or stuck.They had lost the key, and the lock stymied the first three locksmiths they called.
• 2007, January 21, Joyce Cohen, Beauty in the Eye of the Renter, I was making such a drama in my head it was stymieing me.