obstacle
Something that impedes, stands in the way of, or holds up progress, either physically or figuratively
Example
“A big obstacle to understanding the manual was that it had been poorly translated from the Japanese.”
Synonyms
- barrier
- complication
- obstruction
Related words
- obstacular
- obstaculate
- obstacle course
- obstacle race
- obstacle-ridden
Word history
From Latin "obstāculum".
Where this comes from
This definition is adapted from “obstacle” on Wiktionary, by its contributors; related-word lists use Open English WordNet (CC BY 4.0, based on Princeton WordNet), published under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page is published under the same licence.