From Longman Dictionary of Contemporary Englishstymiesty‧mie /ˈstaɪmi/ verb [transitive] informalPREVENT to prevent someone from doing what they have planned or want to do SYN thwart Investigators have been stymied by uncooperative witnesses.→ See Verb table
Examples from the Corpus
stymie• So the Republican sneak-it-through strategy is mostly stymied.• The Middle East peace process was stalemated; negotiations were stymied.• Such a relationship will certainly stymie a positive editorial association.• Gao Yang twisted himself around the tree just in time to see Gao Ma stymied by the obstacle.• The investigation has been stymied by witnesses who refuse to cooperate.• They relished every chance to stymie him.• He typified a decade in which financial machinations stymied long-term corporate growth.• Political problems which might have stymied Solomon were resolved in a pun or an epigram.Origin stymie (1800-1900) Perhaps from Scottish English, “person who cannot see well” 