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

But that quest clearly hit another roadblock early in this season, continuing the trend of unavailability that’s underscored his time with the club over the last three years. —Kyle Newman, Denver Post, 15 Apr. 2025

Deportation Efforts to return a Maryland man to the US after he was mistakenly deported to El Salvador last month hit another serious roadblock on Monday. —Jade Walker, CNN Money, 15 Apr. 2025

Tesla hits a trade war roadblock As Beijing retaliated — again — against Trump’s tariff hikes, Tesla quietly pulled options to buy new Model S and X electric vehicles from its website in China. —Quartz Staff, Quartz, 14 Apr. 2025

The challenge lies in making security an enabler rather than a roadblock. —Yair Finzi, Forbes.com, 14 Apr. 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