as in unlikely
incapable of being solved or accomplished
the seemingly impossible problem of world hunger fitting everything in my backpack seemed an impossible task
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Recent Examples of impossible
The tight end class is impossible to ignore this year.
—
Nick Baumgardner, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2026
The jury award was a spur to understand a life recognizably shaped by social-media algorithms, in ways that were perhaps near-impossible to resist, as a serious injury to an entire generation.
—Jeannie Suk Gersen, New Yorker, 9 Apr. 2026
Then, sending messages became effectively impossible, too, without using a VPN.
—ABC News, 9 Apr. 2026
The season ended with several cliffhangers, such as the reveal that Aunt Ophelia was in Grandmama Hester’s basement, Enid’s Alpha wolf-out during the full moon — which may be impossible to reverse — and Isadora Capri’s offer to Tyler to join a group of Hydes.
—Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 9 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for impossible
Nick Baumgardner, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2026
The jury award was a spur to understand a life recognizably shaped by social-media algorithms, in ways that were perhaps near-impossible to resist, as a serious injury to an entire generation.
—Jeannie Suk Gersen, New Yorker, 9 Apr. 2026
Then, sending messages became effectively impossible, too, without using a VPN.
—ABC News, 9 Apr. 2026
The season ended with several cliffhangers, such as the reveal that Aunt Ophelia was in Grandmama Hester’s basement, Enid’s Alpha wolf-out during the full moon — which may be impossible to reverse — and Isadora Capri’s offer to Tyler to join a group of Hydes.
—Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 9 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for impossible
Recent Examples of Synonyms for impossible
Adjective
-
An evolving cross-cultural icon For Nakamachi, seeing how fortune cookies evolved into an unlikely cultural icon in a foreign land is inspiring.—
CNN.com Wire Service,
Mercury News,
10 Apr. 2026
-
The magazine’s second editor was nonetheless a Gernsback ally, the unlikely electrical engineer and former editor of Scientific American Thomas O’Connor Sloane.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
10 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
During that stretch, Davis has waffled between hopeless and hopeful on a weekly basis.—
Jack Flemming,
Los Angeles Times,
15 Apr. 2026
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After a while, a group of hopeless employees – sent to a training program – wreaks havoc on each one of them.—
Marta Balaga,
Variety,
9 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Administration officials previously told CBS News that some of the aggressive tactics used by ICE and Border Patrol agents had become politically problematic.—
Julia Ingram,
CBS News,
13 Apr. 2026
-
And no one ever will again, because Heathers is a (wonderfully) problematic time capsule.—
Debby Wolfinsohn,
Entertainment Weekly,
13 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
While some of her clothes were outlandish and impractical, most were insistently in line with the needs of an urban, often professional, woman.—
Eliza Goodpasture,
ARTnews.com,
15 Apr. 2026
-
While some sites provide after-school for a fee, the cost of extended hours can be so high, and the schedule so impractical, that some parents are forced to turn down the city’s offer of free care.—
Cayla Bamberger,
New York Daily News,
9 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Tackling plant problems at the wrong time in a plant’s or insect’s life cycle can be futile and environmentally harmful.—
Beth Botts,
Chicago Tribune,
11 Apr. 2026
-
Ultimately, the Yanks would spend 2 hours and 45 minutes on the court, meaning 2023 champion Tiafoe, who had prevailed in two previous marathons, wound up whacking balls for eight-plus hours in his ultimately futile bid for reach a fourth consecutive final here.—
Dale Robertson,
Houston Chronicle,
4 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Impossible.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/impossible. Accessed 17 Apr. 2026.
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