thwart

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verb

ˈthwȯrt

thwarted; thwarting; thwarts

Synonyms of thwart next

transitive verb

: to oppose successfully : defeat the hopes or aspirations of

: to run counter to so as to effectively oppose or baffle : contravene

: to pass through or across

thwarter noun

thwart

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adverb

ˈthwȯrt

nautical often ˈthȯrt

: athwart

thwart

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adjective

: situated or placed across something else : transverse

thwartly adverb

thwart

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Did you know?

Try to compile a long list of words in English that begin with “thw,” and prepare to be thwarted in your attempt: there aren’t many, and a goodly portion of those that do exist, such as thwartwise and the now-obsolete thwartsaw, start with thwart itself. Today we mostly use thwart as a verb to mean “to defeat or oppose successfully” but a lesser-known meaning of the word is “to pass through or across.” And it’s that sense that points to the origin of this odd-sounding word. In early Middle English, thwert was an adverb meaning “across” or “transversely,” used to describe how something lies across the length of something else. The verb thwerten came from this adverb and eventually became thwart. The link between the meanings becomes clear if you think of thwarting a plan, effort, etc., as blocking a road or path, thereby impeding another’s progress. And if you’re at cross-purposes with someone, you two are mutually—even if unintentionally—thwarting each other’s plans.

Choose the Right Synonym for thwart

frustrate, thwart, foil, baffle, balk mean to check or defeat another's plan or block achievement of a goal.

frustrate implies making vain or ineffectual all efforts however vigorous or persistent.

frustrated attempts at government reform

thwart suggests frustration or checking by crossing or opposing.

the army thwarted his attempt at a coup

foil implies checking or defeating so as to discourage further effort.

foiled by her parents, he stopped trying to see her

baffle implies frustration by confusing or puzzling.

baffled by the maze of rules and regulations

balk suggests the interposing of obstacles or hindrances.

officials felt that legal restrictions had balked their efforts to control crime

Example Sentences

Verb She did all she could to thwart his plans. The army thwarted the attempt at a coup.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

That continued a trend seen during Barack Obama's presidency, when Republican attorneys general sought to thwart his agenda, with lawsuits against the Affordable Care Act and his climate change initiatives. —

Steve Karnowski, Star Tribune, 17 Feb. 2021 Experts say the president’s order could also thwart TikTok and WeChat by preventing other companies from engaging with the app or providing it with services, since the order targets transactions with the company. —

Sarah E. Needleman, WSJ, 18 Sep. 2020 The Board of Pharmacy Rules Committee vote Monday was unanimous despite warnings that adding heart failure to the part of the rule about collaborative agreements would slow down the rule-making process and could even thwart the regulations from being in effect for the start of the 2020 flu season. —

Christine Sexton, sun-sentinel.com, 26 Aug. 2020 Among many other supporters, New York City Mayor Eric Adams and former NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton had publicly decried the initial charging decision, saying Alba acted in self-defense to thwart what appeared to be either an attempt on his own life or a robbery in progress. —

Chris Pandolfo, Fox News, 12 Apr. 2023 As a result, many users suspect Twitter’s owner, Elon Musk, is working to thwart a potential rival by cracking down on access to Substack, despite his stance on free speech. —

Michael Kan, PCMAG, 9 Apr. 2023 To thwart scalping, The Atlantis is utilizing Ticketmaster Request for the inaugural run of shows, which is open now at TheAtlantis.com and will run through Friday, April 7 at 11:59pm ET. —

Jem Aswad, Variety, 4 Apr. 2023 Clarkson, however, had an ace up her sleeve, hitting her playoff pass button to thwart his steal and advance D. Smooth to the playoffs. —

Edward Segarra, USA TODAY, 4 Apr. 2023 And after a day thwarted, that’s something to celebrate. —

Claudio Lavanga, NBC News, 4 Apr. 2023

Noun

Israel says the raids are meant to crack down on Palestinians militants and thwart attacks. —

Majdi Mohammed, BostonGlobe.com, 4 July 2023 An outfitter named Craig had rented me the 15-foot canoe with a broken thwart, splintering gunwales, and the tanker toilet. —

Florence Williams, Outside Online, 1 Feb. 2022 Serving as captain of the maintop of the U.S.S. Pawnee in the attack upon Mathias Point, 26 June 1861, Williams told his men, while lying off in the boat, that every man must die on his thwart sooner than leave a man behind. —

Drew Broach | Staff Writer, NOLA.com, 10 Nov. 2020 The center yoke thwart is perfectly balanced for one-person portages. —

The Editors, Outside Online, 18 May 2018 See More

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'thwart.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.