stymie
verb (informal)

- to prevent or hinder the progress of

- to prevent something from happening or someone from achieving a purpose

Cambridge Dictionary / Collins Dictionary

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WORD ORIGIN

The term “stymie” originally came from the game of golf in the early 19th century. It referred to a situation where an opponent’s ball obstructed the line of play of one’s own ball on the putting green.

The earliest recorded use of “stymie” as a noun dates back to 1834 in the rules of the Musselburgh Golf Club in Scotland. The verb form appeared about two decades later, around 1857. By the early 1900s, “stymie” had evolved to have a figurative meaning beyond golf.

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STYMIED AT WORK

In business, the term “stymie” is often used to describe situations where progress is hindered or blocked by obstacles, for example:

- Regulatory Hurdles = companies often find their growth stymied by complex regulatory requirements, which can delay product launches or expansions.

- Financial Constraints = lack of funding can stymie a project’s progress, preventing it from reaching completion.

- Organizational Identity = a narrow focus on existing products can stymie innovation, as seen in companies that resist exploring new markets or technologies.

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FROM BLOCKED TO BREAKTHROUGH



The concept of being “stymied” goes beyond mere obstruction; it encapsulates the frustration of progress halted by an unexpected barrier.

This phenomenon occurs across all disciplines, from scientific research hitting unforeseen roadblocks to artists facing creative blocks.

Interestingly, being stymied can sometimes lead to innovative breakthroughs, as it forces individuals to approach problems from entirely new angles. In psychology, the state of being stymied is linked to so-called “cognitive dissonance”, where conflicting ideas create mental discomfort. This discomfort can be a powerful motivator for change, pushing people to seek novel solutions and to expand their understanding of complex issues.

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SYNONYMS

baffle, balk, bar, barricade, be a stumbling block, be dead in the water, be on ice, be stuck in a rut, be up against a brick wall, beat, block, bog down, bottle up, box in, bring to a standstill, checkmate, choke, clip one's wings, confound, constrain, corner, cramp (one's style), cripple, curb, cut off, dash, dead-end, defeat, derail, deter, disable, discourage, dishearten, disrupt, encumber, entangle, fence in, flummox, foil, forestall, freeze, frustrate, get bogged down, get nowhere, give the runaround, go nowhere fast, ground, halt, hamper, hamstring, handicap, hang fire, hang-up, hinder, hit a brick wall, hit a roadblock, hit a snag, hobble, hold back, hold off, hold up, impede, inhibit, interfere with, jam, keep in check, kibosh, lay an egg, lick, limit, mire, mystify, nip in the bud, nonplus, obstruct, paralyze, perplex, prevent, prohibit, put a crimp in, put a damper on, put on back burner, put on hold, put on ice, put paid to, put the brakes on, put the kibosh on, puzzle, queer, restrict, retard, roadblock, run into a brick wall, scotch, scuttle, shoot down, short-circuit, sideline, slow down, snarl, spike, spin one's wheels, squash, stall, stand in the way, stick, stonewall, stop, stop cold, stop in its tracks, stop short, stump, STYMIE, suppress, throw a monkey wrench into the works, throw off track, thwart, tie one's hands, torpedo, trip up, upset the apple cart

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SMUGGLE OWAD into a conversation today, say something like:

"The restaurant's new menu managed to STYMIE both the food critics and the spell-check function."

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