The "Thwarted" Thesaurus: words about being frustrated at every turn

Running into obstacles everywhere you go? Does it seem like everything is conspiring against you making even the slightest bit of progress? Stop cursing about it and use these words about deflated ambition and stifled hopes instead.
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. vex
    be a mystery or bewildering to
    Montgomery parents aren’t only ones confused by grading changes New standards-based report cards vex parents in Fairfax and in school systems around the country.
    Washington Post (May 30, 2013)
  2. dumbfound
    be a mystery or bewildering to
    Individually, there was an assortment of intriguing achievements and dumbfounding failures.
    New York Times (Jul 13, 2013)
  3. stupefy
    be a mystery or bewildering to
    I perceived it coming towards me by the flashing bushes it touched, and was too astounded and stupefied to stir.
    Forbes (Jan 23, 2013)
  4. perplex
    be a mystery or bewildering to
    The decision was perplexing to Dong, since he had been given signals that authorities would be accommodating on environmental issues.
    Reuters (Mar 9, 2013)
  5. thwart
    hinder or prevent, as an effort, plan, or desire
    Willis, 24, thwarted rookie Deshorn Brown three times and made four other stops in front of more than 20 guests from his college days.
    Washington Post (Jul 8, 2013)
  6. baffle
    be a mystery or bewildering to
    The protests—informal, spontaneous, collective, often chaotic—are baffling to governments organized along hierarchical lines of authority.
    BusinessWeek (Jun 27, 2013)
  7. nonplus
    be a mystery or bewildering to
    He is surprised and nonplussed at every step.
    Ernst Mach
  8. stymie
    hinder or prevent the progress or accomplishment of
    President Barack Obama proposed tighter gun controls but was stymied by Congress.
    Reuters (Jul 2, 2013)
  9. hinder
    be an obstacle to
    Its new report calls on Welsh ministers to provide adequate broadband links for all schools saying poor quality connectivity "hinders" class work.
    BBC (Jul 12, 2013)
  10. preclude
    make impossible, especially beforehand
    Auction rules preclude talks between bidding parties after an initial expression of interest.
    Reuters (Jun 26, 2013)
Created on Wed Jul 17 18:55:19 EDT 2013 (updated Mon Aug 04 17:22:10 EDT 2014)

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