handicap

noun

1 this legislation is a handicap to the competitiveness of the industry:

impediment, hindrance, obstacle, barrier, bar, encumbrance;

disadvantage, drawback, stumbling block, difficulty, shortcoming, obstruction, limitation, constraint, straitjacket, restriction, check, block, curb;

ball and chain, albatross, millstone around someone's neck;

literary trammel.

▷antonyms benefit; advantage.

2 dated or offensive he was born with a significant visual handicap:

disability, affliction;

often offensive physical abnormality, mental abnormality, defect, impairment.

verb

delivery of services has been handicapped by inadequate investment:

hamper, impede, hinder, impair, disadvantage, put at a disadvantage, hamstring, curtail;

restrict, check, obstruct, block, curb, bridle, hold back, constrain, limit, encumber;

informal stymie;

North American, informal bork;

literary trammel.

▷antonyms help.