Noun: obstacle ób-sti-kul
- An obstruction that stands in the way (and must be removed, surmounted or circumvented)
"The fallen tree was a significant obstacle on the hiking trail"
- Something immaterial that stands in the way and must be circumvented or surmounted
"lack of imagination is an obstacle to one's advancement"; "the poverty of a district is an obstacle to good education";
- obstruction
Derived forms: obstacles
Type of: balk, baulk [Brit], check, deterrent, handicap, hinderance [rare], hindrance, impediment, impedimenta, obstructer, obstruction, obstructor
Encyclopedia: Obstacle