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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.
Examples of stymie in a Sentence
Adam Sachs, Condé Nast Traveler, 28 Mar. 2026
Former Justice Department officials have publicly alleged that backdoor lobbying stymied the antitrust division’s efforts under Gail Slater to push a breakup at trial.
—Liz Hoffman, semafor.com, 27 Mar. 2026
On the edges of Beirut's stylish downtown area and the trendy Mar Mikhael neighborhood is the devastated port area, wrecked by a massive explosion in 2020, with efforts to apportion responsibility for the disaster allegedly repeatedly stymied by Hezbollah.
—David Brennan, ABC News, 26 Mar. 2026
But even with that said, this was a different game than their weekend loss to Boston, when the Red Wings played well enough to win only for Jeremy Swayman to stymie them.
—Max Bultman, New York Times, 25 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for stymie
Cite this Entry
“Stymie.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/stymie. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.
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stymie
verb
