Source: Merriam-Webster.com

Impediments– Something that makes it difficult to do or complete something: Something that interferes with movement or progress.

I encountered this word while reading Colson Whitehead’s, “City Limits”. In this particular sentence, it states ” It saw you steeling yourself for the job interview, slowly walking home after the late date, tripping over nonexistent  impediments on the sidewalk”. Now that I understand what the meaning of the word is, it allows me to understand the concept of the sentence. As a result I was even able to imagine someone tripping over something that isn’t really there. This shows me that having the knowledge of one word can changed the way you see the entire sentence.