ob + tenēre

Hello!

Merriam-Webster says that "obtinēre" means "to hold on to, possess, obtain". It also says that "tenēre" by itself means "to hold" while the prefix "ob-" means "in the way". I was wondering if someone could explain how "to hold + in the way" gave rise to the meaning "to hold on to, possess, obtain". As far a I can tell, "in the way" means "obstructing" or "blocking".

Thanks!