impassable

[ im-pas-uh-buh l, -pah-suh- ]

/ ɪmˈpæs ə bəl, -ˈpɑ sə- /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR impassable ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

not passable; not allowing passage over, through, along, etc.: Heavy snow made the roads impassable.

unable to be surmounted: an impassable obstacle to further negotiations.

(of currency) unable to be circulated: He tore the bill in half, making it impassable.

Nearby words

imparl, imparlance, impart, impartial, impartible, impassable, impasse, impassible, impassion, impassionate, impassioned

Origin of impassable

First recorded in 1560–70; im-² + passable

Related forms

im·pass·a·bil·i·ty, im·pass·a·ble·ness, nounim·pass·a·bly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for impassable

Unwisely, he took a shortcut and so missed the impassable Cabora Bassa cataracts blocking the river.
Dr. Livingstone, I Presume? The Victorian Explorer at 200|Tim Jeal|March 19, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Like a quietly heroic astronaut-to-be from Wapakoneta, Ohio, now gone, they have similar dreams that “nothing is impassable.”
Fire In Cairo: A View From the Arab Street|John Kael Weston|September 20, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Our beach path was impassable, we found another way on the back road.
Our Visit From Irene|India Hicks|August 27, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Many roads throughout Europe are impassable—Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales are particularly stricken.
European Travel Breakdown|Clive Irving|December 20, 2010|DAILY BEAST

German found the old road blocked up with fallen rocks, so as to be impassable.
The Lives of the Saints, Volume II (of 16): February|Sabine Baring-Gould
In the south, however, this ancient custom still remains in full force; the doors there are yet impassable to lovers.
A Jar of Honey from Mount Hybla|Leigh Hunt
The idea of caste as an eternal and impassable barrier has largely determined the history of India.
The Group Mind|William McDougall
In fact, an impassable gulf yawned between the old Roman religion and modern Roman thought.
Ten Great Religions|James Freeman Clarke
Souls reach out to each other across the impassable gulfs of individual being.
The Spinster Book|Myrtle Reed

British Dictionary definitions for impassable

impassable

/ (ɪmˈpɑːsəbəl) /

adjective

(of terrain, roads, etc) not able to be travelled through or over

Derived Forms

impassability or impassableness, nounimpassably, adverb

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012