impede

Meanings

1. 1
   verb

   To get in the way of; to hinder.

   impede someone's progress

2. 2
   verb

   block passage through

3. 3
   verb

   be a hindrance or obstacle to

Etymology

Borrowed from Latin impediō (“to shackle”), from pēs (“foot”) (compare pedestrian). First attested use as a verb was in William Shakespeare's Macbeth, see quotations.