Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary · 1913

Obstacle

Obstacle , noun

[French, from Latin obstaculum, from obstare to withstand, oppose; ob (see Ob-) + stare to stand. See Stand. and compare Oust, v.]

That which stands in the way, or opposes; anything that hinders progress; a hindrance; an obstruction, physical or moral.
If all obstacles were cut away. And that my path were even to the crown. — Shakespeare