impeach

Impeach comes from Middle English empechen, borrowed from Anglo-Norman empecher, from Old French empeechier meaning "to hinder," which traces back to Latin impedicāre, "to fetter."

The word began with the physical image of fettering or shackling something, then narrowed through Old French into the sense of hindering or obstructing, before English settled on its modern meaning of formally charging someone with misconduct.

It's cognate with French empêcher, meaning "to prevent," which preserves the older sense of hindering that impeach has since moved away from.