hurdles

Concise Oxford English Dictionary © 2008 Oxford University Press:
hurdle/ˈhɜːdl/

▶noun

• 1 one of a series of upright frames which athletes in a race must jump over.

  ■ (hurdles) a hurdle race.

• 2 an obstacle or difficulty.

• 3 a portable rectangular frame strengthened with withies or wooden bars, used as a temporary fence.

  ■ a horse race over a series of such frames.

  ■ Brit. historical a frame on which traitors were dragged to execution.

▶verb

• 1 (often as noun hurdling) run in a hurdle race.

  ■ jump over (an obstacle) while running.

• 2 fence off with hurdles.

– derivatives
hurdler noun.

– origin OE hyrdel ‘temporary fence’, of Gmc origin.