roadblock

noun

road·​block ˈrōd-ˌbläk 

1

a

: a barricade often with traps or mines for holding up an enemy at a point on a road covered by fire

b

: a road barricade set up especially by law enforcement officers

2

: an obstruction in a road

3

: something that blocks progress or prevents accomplishment of an objective

roadblock transitive verb

Examples of roadblock in a Sentence

That's the one roadblock to the plan.

roadblocks on the path to success

Recent Examples on the Web

Plus, there’s many instances of past championship squads hitting a temporary roadblock – especially during the dog days of the schedule. —Shane Young, Forbes, 23 Mar. 2025

Those efforts, however, have hit roadblocks in federal court. —Joey Garrison, USA TODAY, 20 Mar. 2025

Now a breakthrough production method has removed a major roadblock to its bioavailability. —Michael Franco, New Atlas, 20 Mar. 2025

Trump has suspended tariffs on small packages from China, which should enable continued spend by tech giants like Temu, Shein and TikTok in the U.S. Threats to ban or limit pharmaceutical TV ads haven't been realized and are expected to hit legal roadblocks if regulators try. —Sara Fischer, Axios, 18 Mar. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

1913, in the meaning defined at sense 1b

Rhymes for roadblock

• alcock
• beanstalk
• bedrock
• boardwalk
• catwalk
• cornstalk
• crosswalk
• deadlock
• feedstock
• fetlock
• flintlock
• goshawk

Kids Definition

roadblock

noun

road·​block -ˌbläk 

: a blocking of a road (as by police officers)

Legal Definition

roadblock

noun

road·​block

: a road barricade set up by law enforcement officers especially for the purpose of detecting criminal activity