can't win

idiom

informal

—used to say that success is not possible for someone in a particular situation

I feel like I can't win. Nothing I do seems to make any difference.

You can't win when you're dealing with someone so unreasonable.

Examples of can't win in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

That could balloon to a deficit in the hundreds by Wednesday morning if Haley can't win a majority of the 15 states voting Tuesday, because of how delegates will be awarded. —Domenico Montanaro, NPR, 2 Mar. 2024

Some of the strongest GOP opponents argued that Ukraine can't win the war and that there should be a settlement with Russia, an argument Putin has made. —Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 17 Feb. 2024

So he's endorsed somebody that can't win, has no chance of winning. —Hannah Demissie, ABC News, 16 Dec. 2023

Now, there are almost a dozen candidates in the field, and while money can't win a presidential primary, a lack of it can certainly end a campaign. —Ben Kamisar, NBC News, 10 July 2023