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sty·mie

(stīmē)

tr.v. sty·mied, sty·mie·ing, sty·mies

To be an obstacle to; prevent the advancement or success of; thwart or stump: weather that stymied attempts to locate the missing hikers; a math problem that stymied half the class.

1. An obstacle or obstruction.

2. Sports A situation in golf in which an opponent's ball obstructs the line of play of one's own ball on the putting green.

[Originally, a golf ball obstructing one's line of play; perhaps akin to Scots stymie, person with poor vision (perhaps from styme, in to se nocht ane styme, not to see a glimmer (of something)).]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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