hurdle

C2+ Topic:Sports & Fitness

US /ˈhɝdəl/ UK /ˈhɜːdəl/ See IPA manual

noun verb

Meanings

1

noun
a barrier to be jumped in a race, or an obstacle to be overcome

Funding was the last hurdle before the project could begin.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a barrier to be jumped in a... obstacle barrier obstruction hindrance impediment difficulty fence barricade

Word family

Derived forms hurdler

Etymology

From Old English hyrdel ('frame of interwoven twigs, temporary fence'), a diminutive of a Germanic root *hurdiz ('wickerwork'), from Proto-Indo-European *kert- ('to weave, twist').

hyrdel Old English *hurdiz Proto-Germanic *kert- Proto-Indo-European

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Sports & Fitness

# hurdle

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2+
**Part of speech:** noun, verb
**IPA (US):** ˈhɝdəl
**IPA (UK):** ˈhɜːdəl

## Meanings
1. a barrier to be jumped in a race, or an obstacle to be overcome

## Examples
- Funding was the last hurdle before the project could begin.

## Synonyms
- obstacle
- barrier
- obstruction
- hindrance
- impediment
- difficulty
- fence
- barricade

## Derived Forms
- hurdler

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: hyrdel
- Root: *hurdiz
- Root: *kert-

## Etymology
From Old English hyrdel ('frame of interwoven twigs, temporary fence'), a diminutive of a Germanic root *hurdiz ('wickerwork'), from Proto-Indo-European *kert- ('to weave, twist').

## AI Etymology
Hurdle comes from Old English hyrdel ('frame of interwoven twigs, temporary fence'), a diminutive of a Germanic root *hurdiz ('wickerwork'), from Proto-Indo-European *kert- ('to weave, twist'). The etymological trail includes Old English hyrdel, Proto-Germanic *hurdiz, and Proto-Indo-European *kert-. As a noun, hurdle means a barrier to be jumped in a race, or an obstacle to be overcome. The same family is visible in derived forms such as hurdler.

## Topics
- Sports & Fitness

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hurdle

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