obstacleob‧sta‧cle /ˈɒbstəkəl $ ˈɑːb-/ ●●○ noun [countable] 
Fear of change is an obstacle to progress. The tax puts obstacles in the way of companies trying to develop trade overseas. Women still have to overcome many obstacles to gain equality. We want to remove all obstacles to travel between the two countries. the single biggest obstacle to a Conservative victory in the next election There are formidable obstacles on the road to peace.2an object which blocks your way, so that you must try to go around itCOLLOCATIONSverbsbe an obstacle· This issue is a major obstacle to a successful peace treaty.prove an obstacle (=be an obstacle)· The weather proved an obstacle, with nonstop rains flooding the field.present/pose an obstacle (=cause an obstacle to exist)· Serious differences continue to present obstacles to an agreement.· Our reliance on fossil fuels poses an obstacle to achieving these targets.overcome an obstacle (also surmount an obstacle formal) (=find a solution to an obstacle)· We need to help young people overcome the obstacles that poverty puts in their way.remove an obstacle· Opening the border removed all obstacles to trade and travel between the two countries.face an obstacle (=have to deal with an obstacle)· The investigation has faced numerous obstacles.encounter an obstacle (=find that there is an obstacle)· People should not encounter obstacles because of their age, sex, race, or religion.put/place obstacles in the way (=try to stop someone from doing something easily)· Her father put several obstacles in the way of their marriage.adjectivesa major/serious obstacle· Debt is a major obstacle to economic growth.· There are serious obstacles to obtaining sufficient funding.a real obstacle (=a serious one)· The lack of oil and gas resources in Northeast Asia is a real obstacle to the region's economic development.the main/biggest/greatest etc obstacle· The biggest obstacle to women's equality was social expectations of male and female roles.an insuperable/insurmountable obstacle (=one that it is impossible to find a solution to)· The problem does not present an insurmountable obstacle.· There are no insuperable obstacles to the purchase of the company.a formidable obstacle (=one that makes it very difficult to achieve something)· There are formidable obstacles to legal reform.a legal/political/technical etc obstacle· Despite technical obstacles, scientists at NASA are considering the project.phrasesan obstacle in the way/path· There were still a number of obstacles in the way of an agreement.
WORD ORIGINobstacle
Origin:
1300-1400 Old French, Latin obstaculum, from obstare ‘to stand in the way, stand in front of’EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- an obstacle in the road
- She had to overcome a lot of obstacles to finally make it to drama college.
- The deal should go through, but there are several legal obstacles to overcome first.
- The greatest obstacle to economic progress has been mass unemployment.
- The lack of money is a serious obstacle that could prevent the project from succeeding.
- There's no reason why the fact of being a parent should be an obstacle to women's career progression.
- There are a number of obstacles in the way of a lasting peace settlement.
- As he progressed there is little doubt that he would have found his path increasingly hampered by obstacles.
- But most entrepreneurial managers tell us that unions have not been their primary obstacle.
- But the man was a romantic and probably saw Steve as an obstacle he might have to overcome.
- Getting people to care-enough to bother doing some-thing-seems to be the real obstacle.
- Such abuse of power is not just a problem for women, it is potentially an obstacle to accomplishing the mission.
- The main obstacle was the steep Crooksbury Hill after 19 miles, with the Punchbowl being a descent.
- There still are major obstacles ahead, such as trips to Georgetown and Villanova.
- Troops may be moved over intervening models, buildings, terrain and any other obstacles or scenery.
Longman Language Activatora problem that stops you from making progress
something that happens which stops you making progress or which makes things worse than they were before: · Arafat has survived crises, setbacks, and challenges to his leadership.have/suffer a setback: · The peace talks have suffered a series of setbacks.setback for: · The court's decision was a major setback for Bradley.setback in: · Manning suffered a setback in his battle against alcoholism.serious/major/big setback: · The two losses are a serious setback for the team's playoff hopes.political/economic/legal etc setback: · The decision is a legal setback for the steel company.business/election etc setback: · He had been depressed over a number of business setbacks.
a problem or difficulty that must be dealt with before you can do or achieve something else: · The main hurdle at present is getting the council's permission.legal/bureaucratic/political etc hurdle: · Women face a lot of legal hurdles trying to prove sexual harassment.· There are lots of bureaucratic hurdles to deal with when adopting a child.hurdle for: · Requiring school uniforms can be a financial hurdle for the poor.clear/pass a hurdle: · The bill has cleared all the hurdles before it and will soon become law.
a fact or situation that will make it very difficult for something to be achieved: · Negotiations with management broke off Tuesday, with wage proposals the stumbling block.stumbling block to: · Each side has accused the others of creating stumbling blocks to peace.stumbling block for: · Mortgage interest rates have fallen, but large down payments remain a stumbling block for house buyers.
something that makes it very difficult for you to do what you are trying to do: · America's top golfers played well despite the hindrance of early morning mist.· I concentrated on my career, feeling that a family would be a hindrance.be a hindrance to: · The country's poor infrastructure is a major hindrance to importers.· The biggest hindrance to economic reform has been the lack of access to U.S. markets.without hindrance: · Travelers can move through the country without hindrance.more of a hindrance than a help (=causing more problems than there would be otherwise): · The girls wanted to set the table, but they were more of a hindrance than a help.
a difficult problem that stops someone or something making progress or developing: · The deal should go through, but there are several legal obstacles to overcome first.· There are a number of obstacles in the way of a lasting peace settlement.obstacle to: · There's no reason why the fact of being a parent should be an obstacle to women's career progression.
a problem that prevents you from achieving something a problem that makes it difficult but not impossible for you to achieve what you want to achieve: · The lack of money is a serious obstacle that could prevent the project from succeeding.obstacle to: · The greatest obstacle to economic progress has been mass unemployment.overcome an obstacle (=deal with it successfully): · She had to overcome a lot of obstacles to finally make it to drama college.
something that prevents someone from achieving what they want: · His disability was no bar to his entry into the profession.· Differences in religious beliefs are not necessarily a bar to a good relationship.
preventing something from improving, developing, growing etc: · I found the lack of available reference books very limiting.· There is a lot of research that still needs to be done, but money is an important limiting factor.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE ENTRYverbs There were insuperable obstacles, and the plan was abandoned.
1something that makes it difficult to achieve somethingobstacle to· This issue is a major obstacle to a successful peace treaty.
(=be an obstacle)· The weather proved an obstacle, with nonstop rains flooding the field.
(=cause an obstacle to exist)· Serious differences continue to present obstacles to an agreement.· Our reliance on fossil fuels poses an obstacle to achieving these targets.
(also surmount an obstacle formal) (=find a solution to an obstacle)· We need to help young people overcome the obstacles that poverty puts in their way.
· Opening the border removed all obstacles to trade and travel between the two countries.
(=have to deal with an obstacle)· The investigation has faced numerous obstacles.
(=find that there is an obstacle)· People should not encounter obstacles because of their age, sex, race, or religion.
(=try to stop someone from doing something easily)· Her father put several obstacles in the way of their marriage.
adjectives· Debt is a major obstacle to economic growth.· There are serious obstacles to obtaining sufficient funding.
(=a serious one)· The lack of oil and gas resources in Northeast Asia is a real obstacle to the region's economic development.
· The biggest obstacle to women's equality was social expectations of male and female roles.
(=one that it is impossible to find a solution to)· The problem does not present an insurmountable obstacle.· There are no insuperable obstacles to the purchase of the company.
(=one that makes it very difficult to achieve something)· There are formidable obstacles to legal reform.
· Despite technical obstacles, scientists at NASA are considering the project.
phrases· There were still a number of obstacles in the way of an agreement.
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES There were insuperable obstacles, and the plan was abandoned. (=cause a problem that is difficult to deal with or solve)· The lack of money presented a massive obstacle.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADJECTIVE· Cooling the water is the biggest obstacle.· Perhaps his biggest obstacle has been his instrument -- the flute, never taken seriously as a jazz instrument.· But disabled people believe the biggest obstacles they face are mental ones-the prejudices and thoughtlessness of able-bodied people.· I also knew that one of the big obstacles to overcome would be the old conditioning.· Yet the biggest obstacle is locating a suitable venue for this gargantuan Christmas dinner.· My biggest obstacle, though, was Syngman Rhee.· Although in fairness their biggest obstacle wasn't acting live but making the most of flawed storylines.· Hardie has one big obstacle: The five big record labels haven't agreed to let him to sell their music.
· But there are strings attached, and a fresh bureaucratic and political obstacle course lies ahead.· Financial, technological and bureaucratic obstacles would remain.
· The chief obstacles to Ecotopia lie in the economic, political, cultural and ideological levels.· Increasingly, Mr Kabila's duplicity and intransigence were seen by all as the chief obstacle to any such agreement.
· When it came to assembling facts and details, the system was a formidable obstacle.· To be sure, formidable obstacles lie ahead for advocates of a merger.· Selim had formidable obstacles to overcome, however, in modernising the archaic structure of the Ottoman empire.· The stairs were a formidable obstacle to son Michael, also, since we lived in a bungalow.· The Pennines presented the most formidable obstacles of all to the canals, but even they were successfully overcome.
· This is likely to provide a further obstacle to clear and stable objectives for rail transport.
· The greatest obstacle to the progress of the Unity Campaign was the opposition of the Labour Party.· A greater obstacle may be Clinton himself.· Displaced people from rural areas face even greater obstacles.· Labor-Management Cooperation Many public managers believe that unions are the greatest obstacle standing in the way of entrepreneurial government.· Rather than finance, the greatest obstacle he faces is his attitude.· It discovered that social problems-issues of motivation, attitude, and expectations-were a greater obstacle than lack of programs.· Checking the factual accuracy of the new social security information items proved to be a greater obstacle than usual.· The lack of a Leninist party constitutes the greatest single obstacle to the victory of the world revolution.
· SunSelect says its lawyers are satisfied there are no legal obstacles to selling the stuff.· This ambitious project faces a major legal obstacle.· The question which serves as a starting-point is why there should be legal obstacles to the recognition of the transsexual's change.
· While the implacable opposition of Gen Aoun is the main obstacle in his path, there are plenty of other difficulties.· The main obstacle was a battle-tested Houston team that never blinked, even after nearly blowing a 22-point lead.· It was widely thought that discussions over his release had been the main obstacle in the talks between Meyer and Ramaphosa.· The main obstacle was the steep Crooksbury Hill after 19 miles, with the Punchbowl being a descent.· The main obstacles in this area lay in analysing and approaching suitable targets.· The main obstacle now is the United Nations.· Safety has been the main obstacle.· The main obstacle to the widespread use of abatement techniques is the significant and variable national costs which are incurred.
· I think they will find that most authorities will agree that it has proved a major obstacle but by no means the only one.· Another major obstacle is the fair circuit and its impact on the higher quality stables.· A major obstacle to understanding is the use of technical jargon which is unintelligible to the buyer.· There still are major obstacles ahead, such as trips to Georgetown and Villanova.· The difference in regional house prices acts as a major obstacle to mobility of labour.· The lack of money could also be a major obstacle.· It is often suggested that the issue of the ordination of women is a major obstacle to progress.· Is there not, furthermore, a major obstacle in the question of language?
· But there are strings attached, and a fresh bureaucratic and political obstacle course lies ahead.· Whoever wins, their plans to boost the economy will face political obstacles and will not have an instant effect.· She is no ordinary political obstacle.· Its bids are always fronted by local partners who know their way around the political and regulatory obstacles.· The economic case is irresistible, but the political obstacles are legion.
· Rather the reason lies in very real obstacles to the discovery of what happened.· The real obstacle to these programs is that the resources they require are limited by our political system.· But cluster sampling does have value when distance may provide real obstacles to conducting enquiries.· Getting people to care-enough to bother doing some-thing-seems to be the real obstacle.
· I re-emphasise that the policy of settlements in the occupied territories is a serious obstacle to a peace settlement.· Obstacles and Inertia Despite all the assets just outlined, the rejuvenated university has had to face serious obstacles.· The cognitive obstacles in the way of police investigations Detectives who seek to establish what happened come up against serious cognitive obstacles.· Despite serious technical obstacles, space agency officials are considering whether to launch a Jupiter space probe powered entirely by sunlight.· As a consequence there are, at present, serious obstacles to analysing directly the functional organization of the human brain.· The only serious potential obstacle to the plan foreseen at the time was litigation by employer and union groups.· The lack of sharp focus in this field is a serious obstacle to comparison of analyses and to proper explanation.· As with other orchestras, including the San Diego Symphony, expansion produced serious financial obstacles.
· Whatever their nature or their style, they mostly faced similar obstacles.
· For the system to work properly, several practical and technical obstacles will need to be overcome over the next 12 months.· Despite serious technical obstacles, space agency officials are considering whether to launch a Jupiter space probe powered entirely by sunlight.· The opportunities have been pervasive, given the declining regulatory and technical obstacles to the internationalisation of firms' activities.· Still, there are technical obstacles to be overcome before a major shift from film to digital media can occur.· Environmental concentration of legionellae might have been underestimated because of technical obstacles to detection.· The technical obstacle relates to ring-fencing of local government money.
NOUN· But there are strings attached, and a fresh bureaucratic and political obstacle course lies ahead.· With fatigued muscles, we endured ruck marches, long runs and obstacle courses.· The simplest involves racing down a mountain, while the most complicated requires you to perform tricks on an obstacle course.· The Velcro obstacle course will be 40 feet of trouble for those trying to get through it.· The parents will enjoy watching their children having fun completing the obstacle course particularly if there are a number of novelty items.· There are mazes, obstacle courses, visual recognition games, trial-and-error experiments, arcade-style shooting games.· The rules to make it through the obstacle course of a day's commute to school are carefully laid out.· Our picture shows John in full training before surveying the camp obstacle course.
· Visits, though immensely enjoyable, had elements of both the obstacle race and the assault course.· It was like an obstacle race.
VERB· Perhaps a scientist suggests that in some way the bat's ears are involved in its ability to avoid obstacles.· This time it is found that the ability of the bats to avoid obstacles is considerably impaired.· They hunt at night, and can not use light to help them find prey and avoid obstacles.· Their job isn't to find the way, but to avoid the obstacles and stop at hazards such as road junctions.· I somehow avoided all of the obstacles and my fingers soon touched one of the wooden spokes.
· However, bow shocks become wrapped around blunt obstacles and become much weaker the further away they are from the obstacle head.· Insuring the bonus, now expected to be $ 1. 8 million, has become an obstacle.· From the 1970s onwards, the cold war increasingly became an obstacle to economic and political stability.· The guerrilla strategy advanced by Castroism became one of the obstacles in the fight for the construction of a revolutionary leadership.
· Long-time leader Mweenish would almost certainly have held on had he cleared the final obstacle without error.· For Fleet, which has recently made big acquisitions, the move clears an obstacle in integrating its multi-state operations.· He has cleared the first obstacle cleanly but knows others will present greater problems.
· Britain had created obstacles to co-operation.
· The nuclear programme, because of its sudden appearance and because of the passions it arouses, has encountered its greatest obstacle in people.· Here, some five hundred years ago, the river encountered an obstacle that caused it to split into two channels.· As already noted, the attempt was a qualified success and encountered serious obstacles.· When parents encounter this obstacle, they finally get off the dime and have their kids vaccinated.
· Whoever wins, their plans to boost the economy will face political obstacles and will not have an instant effect.· Obstacles and Inertia Despite all the assets just outlined, the rejuvenated university has had to face serious obstacles.· Displaced people from rural areas face even greater obstacles.· Satisfaction comes not simply from successes but also from making choices, facing challenges and overcoming obstacles.· This ambitious project faces a major legal obstacle.· Grappling with the many varied problems of the nineteenth century, it tackled innumerable tasks and faced innumerable obstacles.· Black and other minority citizens on whom the Democrats were counting faced unusual obstacles in exercising their democratic rights.· Our team has faced all kinds of obstacles.
· We will try to overcome both these obstacles together.· Satisfaction comes not simply from successes but also from making choices, facing challenges and overcoming obstacles.· Miss Ashley had in fact, except as regards changing her birth certificate, overcome all these obstacles to acceptance.· She overcomes the twin obstacles of race and gender through her twin attributes of will and skill.· But it is bound to stimulate the evolution of formal procedures for overcoming the obstacles met by investigators.· As we overcame obstacle after obstacle, our pride grew.· Do you enjoy finding solutions to overcome obstacles?· With man effort not often matched in the animal kingdom, he overcame that considerable obstacle.
· Karen and I went out of our way to place obstacles in our path.· One resident holding out, however perversely, could place unpleasant obstacles in the way of completing the project.· An oesophageal tube was placed just above the obstacle under fluoroscopic guidance to drain the saliva.· Now she placed the obstacle of her nose between Anwar and Changez so that neither could get at the other.
· Even in the atonal phase, before he adopted serialism, he presented obstacles for his listeners.· Although the company hopes for approval this month, Mr Rozells pointed out that the government shutdown presents an obstacle.· However, circling before the horse is presented at the obstacle is not penalised - unlike showjumping.
· I think they will find that most authorities will agree that it has proved a major obstacle but by no means the only one.· As eggplant spread west, though, bitterness proved an obstacle to acceptance.· While Haile Selassie was backed by the United States this proved no obstacle.
· Some cloners think Sun regrets making previous Sparcstations too easy to knock off so it's putting some obstacles in the way.· We have to put division and obstacles, prejudice and barriers in the past.· Another way of approaching the attack on the ball is to put a small obstacle in the way of the downswing.· His father for his part would not then put any obstacle in his son's way.· Stark gave Izzard the warmest of welcomes and seems to have put no obstacle in the way of a biography.
· The only remaining obstacles are located at Wester Hailes, a residential development on the western outskirts of Edinburgh.· That condition remains the key obstacle.· However, qualifications remained a major obstacle.· In the province of Vercelli the shortage of labour therefore remained a serious obstacle to agricultural development.
· But the appointment of a receiver at Birmingham has removed any obstacle.· They must learn how to identify and remove obstacles to performance.· In the past, other things being equal, improvement in a man's income removed obstacles to marriage.· Instead of having managers and supervisors try to control employee behavior, have them focus on removing obstacles to employee performance.· As soon as the blindfold is applied, remove the obstacles and watch the children going over imaginary items.· The adaptation work should help to overcome or remove any obstacles that prevent you from enjoying the use of your present facilities.· A fail-safe system triggered a red signal, giving the driver of the train time to stop and remove the obstacle.· The crew also carries out routine river checks and removes obstacles which may be dangerous.
Fear of change is an obstacle to progress. The tax puts obstacles in the way of companies trying to develop trade overseas. Women still have to overcome many obstacles to gain equality. We want to remove all obstacles to travel between the two countries. the single biggest obstacle to a Conservative victory in the next election There are formidable obstacles on the road to peace.2an object which blocks your way, so that you must try to go around itCOLLOCATIONSverbsbe an obstacle· This issue is a major obstacle to a successful peace treaty.prove an obstacle (=be an obstacle)· The weather proved an obstacle, with nonstop rains flooding the field.present/pose an obstacle (=cause an obstacle to exist)· Serious differences continue to present obstacles to an agreement.· Our reliance on fossil fuels poses an obstacle to achieving these targets.overcome an obstacle (also surmount an obstacle formal) (=find a solution to an obstacle)· We need to help young people overcome the obstacles that poverty puts in their way.remove an obstacle· Opening the border removed all obstacles to trade and travel between the two countries.face an obstacle (=have to deal with an obstacle)· The investigation has faced numerous obstacles.encounter an obstacle (=find that there is an obstacle)· People should not encounter obstacles because of their age, sex, race, or religion.put/place obstacles in the way (=try to stop someone from doing something easily)· Her father put several obstacles in the way of their marriage.adjectivesa major/serious obstacle· Debt is a major obstacle to economic growth.· There are serious obstacles to obtaining sufficient funding.a real obstacle (=a serious one)· The lack of oil and gas resources in Northeast Asia is a real obstacle to the region's economic development.the main/biggest/greatest etc obstacle· The biggest obstacle to women's equality was social expectations of male and female roles.an insuperable/insurmountable obstacle (=one that it is impossible to find a solution to)· The problem does not present an insurmountable obstacle.· There are no insuperable obstacles to the purchase of the company.a formidable obstacle (=one that makes it very difficult to achieve something)· There are formidable obstacles to legal reform.a legal/political/technical etc obstacle· Despite technical obstacles, scientists at NASA are considering the project.phrasesan obstacle in the way/path· There were still a number of obstacles in the way of an agreement.