impracticable
[ im-prak-ti-kuh-buh l ]
/ ɪmˈpræk tɪ kə bəl /
adjective
not practicable; incapable of being put into practice with the available means: an impracticable plan.
unsuitable for practical use or purposes, as a device or material.
(of ground, places, etc.) impassable.
(of persons) hard to deal with because of stubbornness, stupidity, etc.
RELATED WORDS
Nearby words
impoundment, impoverish, impoverished, impoverishment, impower, impracticable, impractical, imprecate, imprecation, imprecise, imprecision
Origin of impracticable
Related formsim·prac·ti·ca·bil·i·ty, im·prac·ti·ca·ble·ness, nounim·prac·ti·ca·bly, adverb
Can be confusedimpossible impracticable impractical improbable
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019
Examples from the Web for impracticable
British Dictionary definitions for impracticable
impracticable
/ (ɪmˈpræktɪkəbəl) /
adjective
incapable of being put into practice or accomplished; not feasible
unsuitable for a desired use; unfit
an archaic word for intractable
Derived Formsimpracticability or impracticableness, nounimpracticably, adverb
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for impracticable
impracticable
"incapable of being done," 1670s, from assimilated form of in- (1) "not, opposite of" + practicable. Earlier in a sense of "impassable" (1650s).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper