FOIL

v. thwart, offset, defeat, baffle, balk, parry, frustrate, counter, check, impede, hamper, outwit, circumvent, checkmate, daunt, disconcert, discomfit, disappoint, pull the rug out from under (someone), cut the ground from under someone's feet, nullify, nip in the bud, countervail (against), Brit put a spoke in (someone's) wheel, Colloq clip (someone's) wings, cut (someone) down to size, spoil (someone's) game, Chiefly US and Canadian faze The villain and his evil plan were again foiled by the arrival of the sheriff