obstant

Obstant is a rare, historical English term with senses related to opposition or hindrance. In its verb sense, obstant denotes to oppose, withstand, or stand against something. In its adjective use, it describes something that opposes or obstructs. The word is primarily encountered in older legal, scholarly, or rhetorical texts and is not common in contemporary standard English.

Etymology and history

Obstant derives from the Latin obstāre, meaning to stand against or oppose. Through Latin into English, the term appears in various medieval and early modern texts, often in formulary or legal language. Modern dictionaries generally mark obstant as obsolete or exceedingly infrequent, with its functions typically supplanted by more common terms such as oppose, obstruct, or notwithstanding.

Usage and examples

In historical contexts, obstant may appear in phrases such as obstant the contrary, signaling that something stands in opposition to a stated proposition. In legal drafting, older clauses or scholastic arguments sometimes used obstant to indicate that a provision remains in effect notwithstanding other statements. In contemporary prose, writers would usually rephrase with more common vocabulary to convey the sense of opposition or overriding force.

Relation to related terms

Obstant is linked semantically to obstinate and obstacle, both rooted in similar notions of opposition. It shares semantic space with the phrase notwithstanding, which is standard in modern English for indicating that a rule or statement applies despite contrary conditions. For readers seeking current usage, obstant is generally avoided in favor of clearer alternatives.

See also

Notwithstanding, oppose, obstruct, obstinate, obstacle.