Obstical or obstacle?
Did you mean obstacle? Here's the right spelling and how to remember it.
Incorrect
obstical
Correct
obstacle
Correct spelling: obstacle. Misspelling: obstical.
letters the misspelling gets wrong or leaves out letters that shouldn't be there
Memory tip
Ob + sta + cle: an obstacle stands in your way.
Why people write “obstical”
“obstical” differs from “obstacle” in 3 places: it writes I where obstacle has A, an easy slip because in an unstressed syllable both vowels can sound like the same soft "uh"; it uses A in place of L; and it uses L in place of E.
Spell-checkers catch the mistake in a document, but not in a handwritten note, a text message or a word game. Writing the word out a few times while saying the tricky part aloud is the quickest way to make obstacle automatic.
What does “obstacle” mean?
obstacle noun
- something immaterial that stands in the way and must be circumvented or surmounted
“lack of imagination is an obstacle to one's advancement”
Synonyms:obstruction
- an obstruction that stands in the way (and must be removed or surmounted or circumvented)
Definitions from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Full dictionary entry
“Obstacle” in a sentence
- We had to climb over an obstacle.
- Lack of imagination is an obstacle to one's advancement.
Is “obstacle” a playable word?
12 points in Scrabble · 15 in Words With Friends
- Scrabble (US)
- Scrabble (UK)
- Words With Friends
“obstical” is not accepted in any of these games. See every word you can make from OBSTACLE.