All dead-end synonyms
dead-end
D d noun dead-end
- cul-de-sac β A cul-de-sac is a short road which is closed off at one end.
- stalemate β Chess. a position of the pieces in which a player cannot move any piece except the king and cannot move the king without putting it in check.
- catch-22 β If you describe a situation as a Catch-22, you mean it is an impossible situation because you cannot do one thing until you do another thing, but you cannot do the second thing until you do the first thing.
- blind alley β If you describe a situation as a blind alley, you mean that progress is not possible or that the situation can have no useful results.
- corner β A corner is a point or an area where two or more edges, sides, or surfaces of something join.
- draw β to cause to move in a particular direction by or as if by a pulling force; pull; drag (often followed by along, away, in, out, or off).
- impasse β a position or situation from which there is no escape; deadlock.
- obstacle β something that obstructs or hinders progress.
- standoff β a standing off or apart; aloofness.
- stumbling block β an obstacle or hindrance to progress, belief, or understanding.
- blank wall β an impassable barricade or obstacle; a situation in which further progress is impossible: Attempts to get information by questioning the neighbors ran into a blank wall.
verb dead-end
- frustrate β to make (plans, efforts, etc.) worthless or of no avail; defeat; nullify: The student's indifference frustrated the teacher's efforts to help him.
- obstruct β to block or close up with an obstacle; make difficult to pass: Debris obstructed the road.
- thwart β to oppose successfully; prevent from accomplishing a purpose.
- stonewall β to engage in stonewalling.
- foil β to cover or back with foil.
- stall β a pretext, as a ruse, trick, or the like, used to delay or deceive.
- impede β to retard in movement or progress by means of obstacles or hindrances; obstruct; hinder.
- crimp β If you crimp something such as a piece of fabric or pastry, you make small folds in it.
- choke off β To choke off financial growth means to restrict or control the rate at which a country's economy can grow.
- mystify β to perplex (a person) by playing upon the person's credulity; bewilder purposely.
- prevent β to keep from occurring; avert; hinder: He intervened to prevent bloodshed.
- cramp β Cramp is a sudden strong pain caused by a muscle suddenly contracting. You sometimes get cramp in a muscle after you have been making a physical effort over a long period of time.
- stump β the lower end of a tree or plant left after the main part falls or is cut off; a standing tree trunk from which the upper part and branches have been removed.
- nonplus β to render utterly perplexed; puzzle completely.
- defeat β If you defeat someone, you win a victory over them in a battle, game, or contest.
- pigeonhole β one of a series of small, open compartments, as in a desk, cabinet, or the like, used for filing or sorting papers, letters, etc.
- confound β If someone or something confounds you, they make you feel surprised or confused, often by showing you that your opinions or expectations of them were wrong.
- crab β A crab is a sea creature with a flat round body covered by a shell, and five pairs of legs with large claws on the front pair. Crabs usually move sideways.
- shelve β to place (something) on a shelf or shelves.
- balk β If you balk at something, you definitely do not want to do it or to let it happen.
- puzzle β a toy, problem, or other contrivance designed to amuse by presenting difficulties to be solved by ingenuity or patient effort.
- block β A block of flats or offices is a large building containing them.
- snooker β a variety of pool played with 15 red balls and 6 balls of colors other than red, in which a player must shoot one of the red balls, each with a point value of 1, into a pocket before shooting at one of the other balls, with point values of from 2 to 7.
- cut off β If you cut something off, you remove it with a knife or a similar tool.
- hold up β to have or keep in the hand; keep fast; grasp: She held the purse in her right hand. He held the child's hand in his.
- hang fire β a state, process, or instance of combustion in which fuel or other material is ignited and combined with oxygen, giving off light, heat, and flame.
- hang up β the way in which a thing hangs.
- hold off β to have or keep in the hand; keep fast; grasp: She held the purse in her right hand. He held the child's hand in his.
- put on hold β suspend
adj dead-end
- impassable β not passable; not allowing passage over, through, along, etc.: Heavy snow made the roads impassable.
- dim β DIM statement
- disguised β to change the appearance or guise of so as to conceal identity or mislead, as by means of deceptive garb: The king was disguised as a peasant.
- secluded β sheltered or screened from general activity, view, etc.: a secluded cottage.
- dark β When it is dark, there is not enough light to see properly, for example because it is night.
- concealed β to hide; withdraw or remove from observation; cover or keep from sight: He concealed the gun under his coat.
- closed β A closed group of people does not welcome new people or ideas from outside.
- obscured β (of meaning) not clear or plain; ambiguous, vague, or uncertain: an obscure sentence in the contract.
- blocked β If something is blocked or blocked up, it is completely closed so that nothing can get through it.
- unmarked β not marked.