impassible
Americanadjective
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incapable of suffering pain.
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incapable of suffering harm.
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incapable of emotion; impassive.
adjective
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not susceptible to pain or injury
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impassive or unmoved
Other Word Forms
- impassibility noun
- impassibleness noun
- impassibly adverb
Etymology
Origin of impassible
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English word from Late Latin word impassībilis. See im- 2, passible
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The undersheriff said 20 to 40 people remained trapped Monday near the Salinas River because the roads were impassible for rescuers.
From Seattle Times • Mar. 14, 2023
Buckled and impassible roads won’t make it any easier for medical organizations, said Kirsch, who has worked extensively in disaster zones, including in Haiti after it was devastated by a 2010 earthquake.
From Washington Post • Feb. 9, 2023
At one point last month, an already shallow portion fell to a depth of 15 inches, making it impassible for cargo ships.
From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 4, 2022
The roads, which are rutted and difficult to travel in the best of circumstances, may have been badly damaged in the quake, and landslides from recent rains have made some impassible.
From Washington Times • Jun. 23, 2022
It behoved him to show them a quiet, impassible brow, in order that they should gain no further information on the subject of the family tragedy than that of which they were already possessed.
From Under a Charm, Vol. III. (of III) A Novel by Werner, E. T. C. (Edward Theodore Chalmers)
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
