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impede

/ɪmˈpiːd//ɪmˈpiːd/·verb
to slow down or obstruct the progress of something
Fig. 1 — Two runners set off down lanes laid side by side for the same distance.
01Definition

To impede is to slow something that is trying to move. The Latin impedire meant 'to shackle the feet' — im- on, pes foot — and the image still fits: what impedes does not destroy or forbid; it ties weights to every step. Bad weather impedes a rescue, bureaucracy impedes innovation, an injury impedes recovery. The destination usually stays reachable — impeding steals time and effort, not the goal itself, which is what separates it from 'prevent'.

02In use
  • iExcessive regulation can impede innovation and slowly erode the appetite for risk.
  • iiDeep snow impeded the rescue team's progress up the mountain.
  • iiiA chronic lack of funding has impeded research into rare diseases.
03Collocations
  • impede progress
  • impede growth
  • seriously impede
  • impede the flow of
  • impede access to

Family impediment (noun)

04Relations

=hinder, obstruct, hamper, slow, encumber

≠facilitate, expedite, accelerate

05Compared
PairThe difference
impede vs hamperweighed down and clogged in the doing → hamper; the way forward obstructed, steps taxed → impede.
impede vs inhibitsomething in the way of progress, taxing every step → impede; a process or impulse held below its natural level → inhibit.
06TOEFL & IELTS

A classic TOEFL passage verb for factors that slow development, migration, or learning — questions often paraphrase it as 'hinder' or 'slow down'. In IELTS Writing Task 2, 'excessive bureaucracy impedes innovation' is a high-band cause clause. The noun is 'impediment' (as in 'a speech impediment'). Learn it as the precise opposite of 'facilitate' — exam writers love testing that pair.

07Asked
What does 'impede progress' mean?
To slow it down without stopping it — 'impede progress' is the verb's signature phrase. What impedes ties weights to every step: red tape impedes reform, fog impedes a rescue. The scene above is the sense exactly — snags rising in one runner's lane, each forcing a stagger. The runner still finishes; what was stolen was time and effort, not the goal.
What is the difference between impede and hinder?
They are close, with a shade between them. Hinder is to hold back or delay, often by getting in the way generally. Impede is more specifically to clog or slow forward motion, as if shackling the feet — its Latin root means 'to fetter'. Both make progress harder; impede pictures the weights on each step a little more vividly.
What is the difference between impede and obstruct?
Obstruct is to block a path by putting a barrier across it — a fallen tree obstructs the road, a wall obstructs the view. Impede is to slow movement without fully blocking it. Obstructing tends to stop; impeding merely hampers. You can impede a process with delays, but you obstruct it only when you put something solid in the way.
What is an impediment?
The noun from impede — anything that hinders or gets in the way. It runs from the abstract ('an impediment to trade') to the physical, and its most familiar use is 'a speech impediment', a difficulty like a stammer or lisp. Whatever the setting, an impediment slows or complicates rather than absolutely prevents.
Is 'impede' a formal word?
Yes — it belongs to careful, often academic writing, where 'excessive bureaucracy impedes innovation' reads a band above 'slows down'. In conversation people say 'get in the way of' or 'hold up'. That formality is its exam value: impede is a precise, high-register verb for cause-and-effect writing about what slows development or reform.
What is the opposite of impede?
Facilitate — to make something easier, clearing the road rather than cluttering it. Exam questions love the pair: one ties weights to every step, the other removes them. Expedite (to speed up) and aid also serve as opposites. If impeding steals time and effort, facilitating gives them back.