as in hurdle
something that makes movement or progress difficult
stumbling on all the obstacles along the path
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Recent Examples of obstacle
The site was previously home to a course for cyclocross, a type of bicycle racing where racers make multiple laps on a closed circuit filled with obstacles and varied terrain.
—
Matthew Geiger, Denver Post, 1 May 2026
Immediately, there were obstacles to the plan.
—Mary Norris, New Yorker, 1 May 2026
Issue One, an advocacy group tracking redistricting nationwide, said changing maps for 2026 could be difficult because many states have already held primaries and legal challenges would place significant obstacles before the general election.
—Bart Jansen, USA Today, 30 Apr. 2026
Real-time obstacle detection means the K1 identifies and navigates around objects in its path, while dynamic cutting adaptation adjusts its approach based on terrain changes.
—Sujita Sinha, Interesting Engineering, 30 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for obstacle
Matthew Geiger, Denver Post, 1 May 2026
Immediately, there were obstacles to the plan.
—Mary Norris, New Yorker, 1 May 2026
Issue One, an advocacy group tracking redistricting nationwide, said changing maps for 2026 could be difficult because many states have already held primaries and legal challenges would place significant obstacles before the general election.
—Bart Jansen, USA Today, 30 Apr. 2026
Real-time obstacle detection means the K1 identifies and navigates around objects in its path, while dynamic cutting adaptation adjusts its approach based on terrain changes.
—Sujita Sinha, Interesting Engineering, 30 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for obstacle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for obstacle
Noun
-
Despite that fast-track status, RP1 has encountered more hurdles from the agency than was expected by Replimune Group, the company producing the drug.—
K. R. Callaway,
Scientific American,
2 May 2026
-
Also, licensing hurdles in many states ban people with records from even becoming barbers or mechanics, the very trades that offer the best path to independence.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
1 May 2026
Noun
-
Symptoms of kidney stones include severe pain on one side of the body, fever, chills, nausea and obstruction of the kidney.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
1 May 2026
-
Nearly a year after 10 inmates escaped a New Orleans jail through a hole in the wall, a special grand jury has indicted the local sheriff on criminal corruption and obstruction charges in connection with the biggest jailbreak in recent American history.—
Greg Hilburn,
USA Today,
30 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Under Ross, that streak is now 25 years, longest in the NFL — a plain embarrassment for the only franchise (still) to have a Perfect Season.—
Greg Cote
May 7,
Miami Herald,
7 May 2026
-
Of those 19 games, eight of them have been the lowest home attendance marks in club history for a franchise coming off three consecutive 100-loss seasons, including a historic 119-defeat embarrassment in 2025.—
Kyle Newman,
Denver Post,
7 May 2026
Noun
-
Inside a New York City welfare office, WELFARE reveals the human struggles, bureaucratic barriers, and impossible choices at the heart of the social safety net.—
Matthew Carey,
Deadline,
6 May 2026
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Construction crews building a barrier between the United States and Mexico damaged a 200-foot-long etching of a fish embedded in the land that is thought to be 1,000 years old, according to a report in the Washington Post.—
Andy Battaglia,
ARTnews.com,
6 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Obstacle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/obstacle. Accessed 8 May. 2026.
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