Definition of impasse
1a : a predicament affording no obvious escapeb : deadlock
2 : an impassable road or way : cul-de-sac
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Examples of impasse in a Sentence
The players are poised to strike after Thursday's games because they believe, with good reason, that if no agreement is reached by the end of the post-season, the owners will declare an impasse … —Murray Chass, New York Times, 9 Aug. 1994
We seem to have been forced into an impasse. We need to understand why space-time singularities have the structures that they appear to have; but space-time singularities are regions where our understanding of physics has reached its limits. —Roger Penrose, The Emperor's New Mind, 1989
I think the civil rights movement in its early and middle years offered the best way out of America's racial impasse: in this society, race must not be a source of advantage or disadvantage for anyone. —Shelby Steele, Harper's, June 1988
An arbitrator was called in to break the impasse.
She had reached an impasse in her career.
Recent Examples of impasse from the Web
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Crenson tracks argument and impasse, action and stalemate over more than a century.
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For Buffett, the impending impasse marks yet another attempt to tackle Energy Future.
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U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will fly Monday to Kuwait in an attempt to resolve the impasse over Qatar’s dispute with its Arab neighbors.
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MADISON - Seeking to break an impasse on the state budget, Gov. Scott Walker has proposed reducing borrowing for transportation projects while sticking to his pledge not to raise gas taxes or vehicle fees.
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The United States is increasingly concerned that a rift between Qatar and other Arab states is at an impasse and could drag on for a long time or intensify, the U.S. State Department said on Thursday.
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In an attempt to break the impasse, Senate President Stephen Sweeney (D., Gloucester) is scheduled to meet with Robert Marino, the CEO of Horizon, at 1 p.m. Monday in the statehouse.
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On top of that, the Senate and House were at an impasse on a long-term fix for the state's worsening multi-billion budget gap, the result of low oil prices and oil production far below the peak.
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A day after New York’s legislative session officially ended with no agreement on renewing mayoral control of New York City schools, lawmakers kept sparring on the issue and remained at an impasse Thursday.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'impasse.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of impasse
French, from in- + passer to pass
IMPASSE Defined for English Language Learners
impasse
playDefinition of impasse for English Language Learners
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: a situation in which no progress seems possible
Law Dictionary
impasse
playLegal Definition of impasse
: a point in especially labor negotiations at which reaching an agreement is impossible because neither party is willing to compromise or change position
Learn More about impasse
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See words that rhyme with impasse Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for impasse Spanish Central: Translation of impasse Nglish: Translation of impasse for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of impasse for Arabic speakers
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