Copyright © Philip M. Parker, INSEAD. Terms of Use.
Definitions: Obstacle |
ObstacleNoun1. Something immaterial that stands in the way and must be circumvented or surmounted: "lack of immagination is an obstacle to one's advancement"; "the poverty of a district is an obstacle to good education"; "the filibuster was a major obstruction to the success of their plan". 2. An obstruction that stands in the way (and must be removed or surmounted or circumvented). Source: WordNet 1.7.1 Copyright © 2001 by Princeton University. All rights reserved. |
Date "obstacle" was first used in popular English literature: sometime before 1321. (references) |
Etymology: Obstacle \Ob"sta*cle\, noun. [French expression, from the Latin expression obstaculum, from obstare to withstand, oppose; ob (see Ob-) stare to stand. See Stand. and compare to Oust, verb.]. (Websters 1913) |
Synonym: ObstacleSynonym: obstruction (n). (additional references) |
| Context | Synonyms within Context (source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus). |
Hindrance | Impediment, let, obstacle, obstruction, knot, knag; check, hitch, contretemps, screw loose, grit in the oil. |
Difficulty; insuperable; obstacle; estoppel; ill wind; head wind; (opposition); trammel, tether; (means of restraint); hold back, counterpoise. | |
Success | Surmount a difficulty, overcome a difficulty, get over a difficulty, get over an obstacle; se tirer d'affaire; make head against; stem the torrent, stem the tide, stem the current; weather the storm, weather a point; turn a corner, keep one's head above water, tide over; master; get the better of, have the better of, gain the better of, gain the best of, gain the upper hand, gain the ascendancy, gain the whip hand, gain the start of; distance; surpass; (superiority). |
| Source: adapted from Roget's Thesaurus. | |
| Domain | Usage | |
Screenplays | And that's really a good thing, because she was really starting to become an obstacle with us. (Look Who's Talking; writing credit: Amy Heckerling) I call it an obstacle course. (MacGyver; writing credit: John Gorrie) | |
Clever | An obstacle is something you see when you take your eyes off the goal. (references; author: unknown) | |
Movie/TV Titles | L' Obstacle (1918) An Obstacle Race (1902) | |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | ||
| Domain | Title | ||
Books |
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Music |
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Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Thumbnail | Description & Credit | Thumbnail | Description & Credit |
 | Each of these swirling clouds is a result of a meteorological phenomenon known as a Karman vortex. These vortices appeared over Alexander Selkirk Island in the southern Pacific Ocean. Rising precipitously from the surrounding waters, the island's highest point is nearly a mile (1.6 km) above sea level. As wind-driven clouds encounter this obstacle, they flow around it to form these large, spinning eddies.Credit: NASA. |  | The dam before restoration, the drop creates a steep obstacle for anadromous fish returning to spawn.Credit: NOAA Restoration Center. |
 | Staff Sgt. Steven Fox, an Air National Guard Defender Challenge team member, slides down the "Tough one" obstacle during Defender Challenge Competition here, Oct. 30. (P.; photo by Senior Airman Oshawn Jefferson).. |  | Senior Airman Daniel Dance, Air Force Special Operations Command, draws a clean line through the low crawl obstacle of the Fitness Challenge during Defender Challenge 2000 at Lackland Air Force Base, Texas, Oct. 30. Defender Challenge is the annual Air Fo. |
 | Men running an obstacle race, during Thanksgiving Day celebrations on board Charleston at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, November 1893.Credit: NAVY. |  | Once over this obstacle and it looks like fair going.Credit: Library of Congress. |
 | The toughest obstacle course in town.Credit: Library of Congress. |  | Food in Britain. Age is no obstacle to war work in Britain. Harry Kind, a sergeant during the Boer War, now seventy-one years old, works a full farming day. Here he is about to thatch a hay-rick. Approximately 700,000 old-age pensioners have braced themse.Credit: Library of Congress. |
 | High school Victory Corps. Surmounting an eight-foot obstacle at top speed is one of the features of the rigorous "commando" training which the boys of Flushing High School, Queens, New York, receive. When the boys finish this program they will be in top.Credit: Library of Congress. |  | Light tank going through water obstacle, Ft. Knox, Ky.Credit: Library of Congress. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |||
| Author | Quotation |
Author Unknown | An obstacle is something you see when you take your eyes off the goals you are trying to reach. |
Bernard Le Bovier Fontenelle | A great obstacle to happiness is to expect too much happiness. |
Daniel J. Boorstin | The greatest obstacle to discovery is not ignorance -- it is the illusion of knowledge. |
John Stuart Mill | The perpetual obstacle to human advancement is custom. |
Thomas Carlyle | The block of granite which was an obstacle in the pathway of the weak becomes a stepping-stone in the pathway of the strong. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | |
| Author | Date | Quotation |
Treaty of Versailles | 1919 | Germany shall be bound to take suitable measures to remove any obstacle or danger to navigation, and to ensure the maintenance of good conditions of navigation. (reference) |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Title | Author | Quote |
Les Miserables | Hugo, Victor | Jean Valjean saw the obstacle. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| Subject | Topic | Quote |
Health | Although portability has been an obstacle to its use, new portable instrumentation is now available. (references) | |
Scientists are also working to overcome an obstacle to effective chemotherapy for brain and spinal cord tumors the blood-brain barrier. (references) | ||
An important but poorly understood component of the nicotine withdrawal syndrome is craving, an urge for nicotine that has been described as a major obstacle to successful abstinence. (references) | ||
Business | Connectivity is the major obstacle in offering cable Internet. (references) | |
In this regard, the language barrier appears to pose a main obstacle. (references) | ||
Larger units run into the obstacle posed by the absence of the necessary cranes in Argentina. (references) | ||
Children | Trinidad and Tobago | The lack of access to transportation, buildings, and sidewalks is a major obstacle for persons with disabilities. (references) |
Haiti | The Constitution and the law provide for free and compulsory primary education; however, in practice access to public schools is the primary obstacle to most rural families. (references) | |
Civil Liberties | Greece | In addition the rigorous training conditions they must meet to advance also require a solid educational background and fluency in Greek, posing an obstacle for many Muslims. (references) |
Discrimination | Congo | Societal discrimination remained an obstacle to the advancement of certain groups, particularly women, Tutsis, Muslims, and the indigenous Pygmy (Batwa) people. (references) |
Economic History | Czech Rep | Lack of transparency throughout the procurement process remains an obstacle. (references) |
Ukraine | The investment climate remains the major obstacle for franchises in Ukraine. (references) | |
Human Rights | Ghana | Its biggest obstacle is a lack of adequate funding. (references) |
Vietnam | The legal institutional framework and legal culture, which favor the procuracy over the judiciary and preserve a presumption of guilt in criminal cases, constitute a major obstacle to free and fair trials. (references) | |
Korea | The U.N. Human Rights Committee has termed the NSL "a major obstacle to the full realization of the rights enshrined in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights." President Kim Dae-jung, who himself was arrested and sentenced to death under the NSL, acknowledged that the law has "problematic areas," and announced his intent to pursue major revisions, especially in light of improvements in relations between North and South Korea since the June 2000 North-South summit. (references) | |
Political Economy | Sudan | This underrepresentation remained a key obstacle to ending the rebellion. (references) |
UKRAINE | An array of taxes and duties remains a major obstacle to trade or investment. (references) | |
CHINA | The large stock of non-performing loans poses a critical obstacle to financial reform. (references) | |
Political Rights | Pakistan | Many Christian activists state that separate electorates are the greatest obstacle to the attainment of Christian religious and civil liberties. (references) |
Trade | Morocco | Import duties are generally high and considered as the main obstacle to higher imports. (references) |
Romania | A potential obstacle for U.S. exporters is the preferential tariff treatment for European competitors. (references) | |
Travel | Mexico | However, this need not be considered an obstacle to the participation of U.S. businesswomen in Mexico. (references) |
Women | Malaysia | These provisions often present an obstacle to women pursuing claims, including charges of abuse, in Shari'a courts against their husbands, though Muslim women are able to file complaints in the civil courts. (references) |
Worker Rights | Cyprus | Corruption among law enforcement and immigration personnel is an obstacle to the effective policing or prevention of trafficking in both communities. (references) |
Lexicography | Devil's Dictionary | GHOST, n. The outward and visible sign of an inward fear. He saw a ghost. It occupied -- that dismal thing! -- The path that he was following. Before he'd time to stop and fly, An earthquake trifled with the eye That saw a ghost. He fell as fall the early good; Unmoved that awful vision stood. The stars that danced before his ken He wildly brushed away, and then He saw a post. Jared Macphester Accounting for the uncommon behavior of ghosts, Heine mentions somebody's ingenious theory to the effect that they are as much afraid of us as we of them. Not quite, if I may judge from such tables of comparative speed as I am able to compile from memories of my own experience. There is one insuperable obstacle to a belief in ghosts. A ghost never comes naked: he appears either in a winding-sheet or "in his habit as he lived." To believe in him, then, is to believe that not only have the dead the power to make themselves visible after there is nothing left of them, but that the same power inheres in textile fabrics. Supposing the products of the loom to have this ability, what object would they have in exercising it? And why does not the apparition of a suit of clothes sometimes walk abroad without a ghost in it? These be riddles of significance. They reach away down and get a convulsive grip on the very tap-root of this flourishing faith. |
Source: compiled by the editor from ICON Group International, Inc.; see credits. | ||
| Speaker | Phrase(s) |
Shimon Peres | I don't think so. I think the difference is a matter of days, not of weeks. And I do believe a solution will be found to overcome this obstacle. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| Speaker | Term | Phrase(s) |
John Adams | 1797-1801 | As this object will now be speedily accomplished, it is expected that the raising and organizing of the troops will proceed without obstacle and with effect. |
James Madison | 1809-1817 | Instead of Leveling as far as possible, every obstacle to the victorious progress of Truth, the Bill with an ignoble and unchristian timidity would circumscribe it with a wall of defense against the encroachments of error. |
Lyndon B. Johnson | 1963-1969 | I propose that we eliminate every remaining obstacle to the right and the opportunity to vote. |
Richard Nixon | 1969-1974 | The obstacle is the other side's absolute refusal to show the least willingness to join us in seeking a just peace. |
Ronald Reagan | 1981-1989 | Now, it is also time for some plain talk about the most immediate obstacle to controlling federal deficits. |
Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
| "Obstacle" is generally used as a noun (singular) -- approximately 99.84% of the time. "Obstacle" is used about 644 times out of a sample of 100 million words spoken or written in English. Its rank is based on over 700,000 words used in the English language. Some parts-of-speech are not covered due to the samples used by the British National Corpus. (note: percents less than one-hundredth of one percent have been omitted) |
| Parts of Speech | Percent | Usage per 100 Million Words | Rank in English |
| Noun (singular) | 99.84% | 643 | 10,143 |
| Noun (common) | 0.16% | 1 | 339,140 |
| Total | 100.00% | 644 | N/A |
Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.
Expressions using "obstacle": be an obstacle to ♦ be an obstacle to smth. ♦ glide path sector obstacle clearance ♦ ice obstacle ♦ natural obstacle ♦ negotiate an obstacle ♦ obstacle clearance ♦ obstacle clearance limit ♦ obstacle clearance surface ♦ obstacle clearing ♦ obstacle course ♦ obstacle light ♦ obstacle race ♦ obstacle to ♦ obstacle to negotiation ♦ obstacle to peace ♦ obstacle to progress ♦ penetration of obstacle clearance surface ♦ prefabricated obstacle ♦ surmount an obstacle. Additional references. | |
| Hyphenated Usage | |
Beginning with "obstacle": obstacle-filled, obstacle-race. | |
Ending with "obstacle": mother-as-obstacle. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. | |
| The following statistics estimate the number of searches per day across the major English-language search engines as identified by various trade publications. Hyperlinks lead to commercial use of the expression at Amazon.com. |
| Language | Translations for "obstacle"; alternative meanings/domain in parentheses. | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Afrikaan | beletsel (hindrance), belemmering (handicap, hindrance, impediment). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Albanian | pengesë (balk, bar, barrier, baulk, block, boom, chock, clog, cramp, crash barrier, cumber, detention, difficulty, dike, disadvantage, drag, drawback, encumbrance, fetter, handicap, hedge, hindrance, hitch, hold up, holdback, hurdle, impediment, interference, interruption, jamming, liability, manacle, mash, obstruction, preclusion, pullback, retardation, retardment, rub, setback, stay, stoppage, stumbling block, stumbling-stone, stunt, traverse, trip up), kleçkë, gardh (barrier, fence, hedge, hindrance, hurdle, impediment, pale, rail, rails, ring fence, stockade). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Arabic | مانع (bar, deterrent, hindrance, preventative, preventive), حجر عثرة (stumbling block), حاجز (arresting, bail, bar, barricade, barrier, block, dike, divider, division, dyke, fence, jamming, levee, parapet, partition, rail, screen, stem, traverse), حائل, عقبة (barricade, block, blockade, bunker, difficulty, drawback, hitch, hurdle, inconvenience, interference, jam, obstruction, snag, spine, stick, stumbling block), عرقل (hamper, mire, obstruct, ravel, tie up), العائق (delphinium, holdback), أعاق (baulk, clog, disserve, fix, hamper, obstruct, traverse). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Bulgarian | спънка (backset, balk, baulk, countercheck, cramp, difficulty, drawback, hindrance, hitch, hobble, impediment, interference, interruption, kink, liability, manacle, preclusion, pull back, setback, shoal, stumbling block), пречка (bit, block, blockage, check, clog, cross, difficulty, disadvantage, disqualification, embarrassment, encumbrance, handicap, hindrance, holdback, hurdle, impediment, kibosh, let, liability, manacle, preclusion, pull back, remora, rub, setback, spoke, stay, stop, stumbling-stone, traverse), препятствие (barrier, contrariety, dike, fence, hamper, hedge, hurdle, interference, jump, obstruction, stop, stumbling block). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Chinese | 障碍物 (Clog), 阻力 (hindrance, obstruction, resistance), 絆腳石 (stumbling block). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Czech | potíž (difficulty, hassle, hitch, inconvenience, snag), překážka (balk, bar, barrier, blockage, fence, hamper, hazard, hindrance, holdback, hurdle, impediment, jump, obstruction, resistance, restriction, roadblock, rub, snag, trig). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Danish | hindringsfrigrænse (obstacle clearance limit). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Dutch | hinderpaal (handicap, impediment), hindernis (handicap, impediment), beletsel (hindrance). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Esperanto | obstaklo, malhelpaĵo (handicap, impediment). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Faeroese | forðan. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Farsi | پاگیر, محظور (Embargo, Hitch, Impediment, Obligation), مانع (Balk, Bar, Barricade, Brake, Crimp, Dike, Drawback, Embargo, Encumbrance, Handicap, Hedge, Hinder, Hindrance, Hitch, Hurdle, Impediment, Let, Lock, Preventive, Repellent, Setback, Shackle, Snag, Stay), گیر (Embroglio, Fix, Gripe, Hitch, Impasse, Impediment, Jamming, Scrape, Snag, Trap), سدجلوراه , رداع . (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Finnish | este (check, fence, hindrance, hurdle, impediment, obstruction, restraint). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
French | obstacle (obstruction). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
German | hindernis (balk, bar, barrier, check, fence, handicap, hazard, hindrance, hump, hurdle, impediment, jump, obstruction). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Greek | εμπόδιο (barrier, block, encumbrance, handicap, hindrance, hitch, hurdle, impediment, obstruction, obtrusion, stumbling block, trammel, trig). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Hebrew | מפגע (hazard, hurdle, nuisance, target), מעצור (balk, baulk, block, brake, check, curb, hindrance, inhibition, jam, rein, restraint, stopper, trammel), מחסום (barrage, barricade, barrier, block, dam, hurdle), מכשלה (hindrance, impediment), מכשולי, מכשול (balk, bar, baulk, drawback, hindrance, hitch, impediment, obstruction, pitfall, snag, stumbling block), מדחפה (downfall, overthrow), מדחה (fallacy, mistake), מניעה (balk, baulk, hindrance, impediment, prevention, prophylaxis, refusal, stop), תקלה (accident, fault, hindrance, hitch, hurdle, incident, jam, mischance, misfortune, mishap, offence), פוקה (hindrance, hurdle, titubation), עכוב (delay, hindrance, hitch, hold up, interception, obstruction, prevention, retardation, setback, stoppage, suspension), חתחת (bump). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Hungarian | gát (bar, barrage, dam, Digue, dike, dyke, hindrance, hurdle, hurdles, impediment, lasher, pen, perineum, rampart, seal, shackle, stumbling-block, trammel, traverse), akadály (balk, bar, barrier, blockage, check, cumber, difficulty, drag, drawback, handicap, hang fire, hindrance, hitch, hobble, hurdle, impediment, leap, let, lion in the path, lion in the way, malfunction, objection, obstruction, retardation, ring fence, snag, stumbling block, stumbling-block, stumbling-stone, throw back, trammel, traverse). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Indonesian | rintangan (encumberrance, handicap, impediment), kendala (barrier, constraint), halangan (hindrance), gandal (hindrance), aral (hindrance). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Italian | ostacolo (balk, check, clog, difficulty, drag, drawback, fence, handicap, hindrance, hitch, holdback, hurdle, impediment, jump, obstruction, setback, snag, stumbling block, wattle). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Japanese Kanji | 障碍 (disorder, hindrance), 障害物 , 障害 (damage, impediment), 障り (bad effect, harm, hindrance, sickness), 邪魔物 (hindrance), 狭き門 (narrow gate, schoolhard to enter), 支障 (difficulty, hindrance, impediment), 当たり障り , 妨害物 . (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Japanese Katakana | ししょう (anthology, cabinetmaker, casualties, difficulty, embezzlement, hindrance, impediment, injuries and deaths, master, poetry and prose, puncture wound, stab, stabbing, stimulation, teacher, thalamus, unlicensed prostitute, woodworker), しょうがいぶつ, しょうがい (accident, assault, casualty, commit suicide, damage, disorder, hindrance, impediment, injury, one's lifetime, public relations, wound), ぼうがいぶつ, さわり (bad effect, feel, harm, hindrance, impression, most impressive passage, punch line, sickness, touch), せまきもん (narrow gate, schoolhard to enter), あたりさわり, じゃまもの (hindrance, someone who is a nuisance or a burden). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Korean | 장애. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Manx | lhiettrimys (bafflement, balk, balk hinderance, ban, bar, barobstruction, constriction, disqualification, drag, drawback, handicap, hang up, hazard, hindrance, hold up, impediment, injunction, jam, prevention, sanction, victimization), clet (rock nearer large one, submerged reef), bac (balk, disability, disqualification, drawback, handicap, moratorium, objection, pull back, snag, stay, trap). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Papiamen | opstákulo. (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Pig Latin | obstacleay obstáculo (balk, barrier, baulk, bunker, but, clog, cramp, difficulty, dike, dykes, handicap, hindsight, holder, hurdle, impasse, impediment, jump, let, obstruction to justice, plummet, preventer, prevention, rub, stop, trammels). (various references) obstacol (bar, barrier, check, clog, cumber, delay, dike, drag, drawback, encumbrance, entanglement, hazard, hindrance, hitch, hold back, hurdle, impediment, interference, jog, leap, marplot, object, obstruction, rub, snag, stay), piedicã (balk, bar, brake, check, clog, cumber, delay, difficulty, drag, drawback, embargo, encumbrance, fetter, hindrance, hitch, hold back, impediment, interference, jog, lock, marplot, objection, obstruction, pull back, sear, set back, sprag, stay, stop, stopper, stopple, stumbling-bloc, trammel, traverse, trigger). (various references) препятствие (balk, barrier, baulk, block, check, clog, contrariety, countercheck, discouragement, disincentive, drawback, encumbrance, hedge, holdback, hurdle, impediment, leap, manacle, obstruction, preclusion, pull back, setback, traverse). (various references) zapreka (cumber, impediment), prepreka (ado, balk, bar, barrage, barrier, baulk, difficulty, drag, drawback, hang up, hindrance, holdback, hurdle, impeachment, impediment, liability, obstruction, set back, setback, snag, static, trammel, traverse), prepona (hurdle). (various references) obstáculo (balk, bar, barrier, baulk, block, blockage, cave, cramps, cumber, drag, handicap, hazard, hindrance, hitch, hurdle, impediment, let, marplot, objection, obstruction, preventer, pullback, trouble, vapor barrier), impedimento (deterrence, deterrent, disability, encumbrance, handicap, hindrance, impediment, prevention, trammel). (various references) hinder (balk, bar, block, check, cumber, curb, disqualification, drag, embargo, embarrassment, encumbrance, entanglement, fence, gorge, hazard, hedge, hindrance, hitch, holdback, hurdle, impediment, interference, object, obstruction, restraint, stymie, trammel). (various references) mani (Crimp, disincentive, hindrance, impediment, slashing), ket (balk, baulk, clog), engel (balk, bar, barrage, barricade, barrier, baulk, block, check, clog, countercheck, counterwork, cramp, Crimp, dam, determent, difficulty, discouragement, disincentive, drag, drawback, encumbrance, entanglement, fence, handicap, hedge, hindrance, hobble, hold up, holdback, hurdle, impediment, interference, let, obstruction, restraint, retardation, rub, shackles, slashing, snag, stay, stick, stop, stumbling block, supersedeas, tie, trammel). (various references) garsylyk, garюylyk (opposition). (various references) завада (balk, clog, disadvantage, hindrance, obstruction, pullback), перешкода (back-set, baffle, balk, bar, barricade, barrier, block, bridle, check, clog, contrariety, countercheck, cramp, cumber, dike, disability, discouragement, drawback, dyke, encumbrance, handicap, hindrance, hitch, hold back, interference, leap, marplot, nuisance, obex, objection, obstruction, obstructive, occlusor, preclusion, pullback, stop, trammels, traverse, wall), перепона (baffle, barricade, hindrance, obstruction, obstructive, occlusor). (various references) vật chướng ngại (balk, baulk, impedient), trở lực sự cản trở, sự trở ngại (block, impediment). (various references) rhwystr (bar, barrier, hindrance). (various references) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Language | Period | Translations |
| Latin | 500 BCE-Modern | adversi, adversis, adverso, adversum, impedimentum, mora, moram, moras, moria, moris, morisque, obstaculum, offendicula, offendiculis, offendiculo, offendiculum. (various references) |
| Old French | 900-1400 | ostacle. (various references) |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references. | ||
Derivations | |
Words beginning with "obstacle": obstacles. (additional references) | |
| |
"Obstacle" is suggested in spellcheckers for the following: obstacal, obstace, obstancle, obsticle, obstycle, Oostmalle, Opstaele, o'stickle. (additional references) | |
| Source: compiled by the editor, based on several corpora (additional references). | |
| # of Phoneme Matches | Pronunciation | Word(s) rhyming with "obstacle" (pronounced Ä"bstukul) |
| 5 | -t u k u l | aeronautical, article, cortical, cuticle, diacritical, grammatical, hypothetical, impractical, nautical, particle, political, practical, receptacle, skeptical, spectacle, tentacle. |
| 4 | -u k u l | agrochemical, allegorical, anarchical, anatomical, anthropological, barnacle, biblical, biochemical, chemical, Chronicle, clavicle, clerical, clinical, commonsensical, coracle, domical, epochal, equivocal, etymological, farcical, follicle, geophysical, hierarchical, maniacal, medical, meteorological, methodical, miracle, monocle, mythical, numerical, Oracle, oratorical, photochemical, pinnacle, polemical, pontifical, quizzical, radical, reciprocal, satirical, typical, unequivocal. |
| 3 | -k u l | acoustical, alphabetical, analytical, ankle, antithetical, apolitical, archaeological, archeological, astrological, astronautical, astronomical, asymmetrical, atypical, autobiographical, bicycle, bifocal, biographical, biological, biomedical, biotechnological, botanical, brickle, buckle, cackle, categorical, cervical, chronological, chuckle, circle, classical, comical, conical, crackle, critical, cubicle, cycle, cyclical, cylindrical, cynical, debacle, dermatological, diabolical, dialectical, ducal, ecclesiastical, ecological, economical, ecumenical, egotistical, electrical, electrochemical, electromechanical, elliptical, empirical, encircle, encyclical, epidemiological, eschatological, ethical, ethnical, evangelical, fanatical, fecal, fickle, fiscal, focal, freckle, galenical, geographical, geological, geometrical, geopolitical, gonococcal, grackle, granduncle, graphical, gynecological, hackle, heckle, helical, heretical, heterocercal, historical, honeysuckle, Huckle, hypercritical, hypocritical, hysterical, icicle, identical, ideological, illogical, immunological, inimical, ironical, jackal, knuckle, lackadaisical, lexical, liturgical, local, logical, logistical, lyrical, magical, mathematical, matriarchal, mechanical, meikle, metallurgical, metaphorical, metaphysical, methodological, metrical, Mickle, morphological, motorcycle, muckle, musical, mystical, mythological, neoclassical, neurological, nickel, Nickle, Nicol, nonelectrical, nonpolitical, nonsensical, nonsurgical, nontechnical, ontological, optical, ornithological, paradoxical, pathological, patriarchal, pedagogical, periodical, petrochemical, pharmaceutical, pharmacological, philosophical, phonological, physical, physiological, pickle, popsicle, preclinical, problematical, prototypical, psychical, psychological, pumpernickel, puritanical, rabbinical, radiological, ramshackle, rankle, rascal, recycle, rhetorical, ruckle, runkle, sabbatical, semiclassical, semicylindrical, semitropical, serological, shackle, shekel, sickle, sociological, Sokol, sparkle, speckle, spherical, sprinkle, statistical, stereotypical, stickle, strategical, suckle, surgical, symmetrical, tabernacle, tackle, tactical, technical, technological, teleological, testicle, theatrical, theological, theoretical, tickle, tinkle, topical, toxicological, trickle, tricycle, tropical, twinkle, typographical, tyrannical, umbilical, uncle, uncritical, uneconomical, unethical, unicycle, unshackle, untypical, vehicle, vertical, viatical, virological, vocal, whimsical, Winkle, wrinkle, zoological. |
Source: compiled by the editor (additional references); see credits. | ||
Scrabble® Enable2K-Verified Anagrams | |
| Words within the letters "a-b-c-e-l-o-s-t" | |
-1 letter: boatels, cablets, cobalts, lactose, locates, oblates, talcose. | |
-2 letters: ablest, bleats, bloats, boatel, botels, cables, cablet, castle, cleats, closet, cobalt, cobles, costae, costal, eclats, lobate, locate, oblast, oblate, osteal, solace, solate, stable, tables. | |
-3 letters: abets, ables, alecs, aloes, altos, ascot, bales, baste, bates, beast, beats, belts, besot, betas, blase, blast, blate, blats, bleat, blest. | |
| Words containing the letters "a-b-c-e-l-o-s-t" | |
+1 letter: bluecoats, bootlaces, brocatels, constable, obstacles. | |
+2 letters: blastocoel, bracteoles, cabriolets, cobaltines, cobaltites, constables. | |
+3 letters: bisectional, blastocoele, blastocoels, brocatelles, catabolites, catabolizes, celebrators, clofibrates, compatibles, conglobates, construable, contestable, meroblastic, obstetrical, outbalances, tablecloths. | |
+4 letters: bibliothecas, blastocoeles, blastocoelic, borosilicate, carboxylates, celebrations, collaborates, collectables, confabulates, contrastable, counterblast, discountable, forecastable, myeloblastic, octosyllable, osteoblastic, problematics, prosecutable, sanctionable, secobarbital, untouchables. | |
+5 letters: bachelorettes, bacteriolyses, bacteriolysis, bisectionally, blastomycoses, borosilicates, claustrophobe, coilabilities, concelebrants, concelebrates, confiscatable, counterblasts, elucubrations, incompatibles, incontestable, incontestably, megaloblastic, obstetrically, octosyllables, secobarbitals, sociabilities, subadolescent, subcollegiate, technobabbles. | |
| Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits. SCRABBLE® is a registered trademark. All intellectual property rights in and to the game are owned in the U.S.A and Canada by Hasbro Inc., and throughout the rest of the world by J.W. Spear & Sons Limited of Maidenhead, Berkshire, England, a subsidiary of Mattel Inc. Mattel and Spear are not affiliated with Hasbro. | |
Hexadecimal (or equivalents, 770AD-1900s) (references)4F 62 73 74 61 63 6C 65 |
| Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519; backwards) (references)
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| American Sign Language (origins from 1620-1817 in Italy and, especially, France) (references)
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| Semaphore (1791, in France) (references)
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| Braille (1829, in France) (references)
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Morse Code (1836) (references)--- -... ... - .- -.-. .-.. . |
| Dancing Men (Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, 1903) (references)
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| Amazon.com BOOKS: Search for: "obstacle" |
