square the circle

Idioms  

1. Try to do the impossible, as in Getting that bill through the legislature is the same as trying to square the circle. This idiom alludes to the impossibility of turning a circle into a square. John Donne may have been the first to use it (Sermons, 1624): “Go not thou about to square either circle (God or thyself).”

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Example Sentences

But the group’s vagueness as it tries to square the circle of its own positions has fueled suspicion.

From Seattle Times

But perhaps the court will ignore or try to sidestep this embarrassing point when the case returns to the justices, and somehow try to square the circle by holding that these embryos are somehow not yet “people” when such agreements are initially made.

From Slate

"Hard to square the circle", we're told.

From BBC

Throughout the pandemic era growth has largely exceeded that rate even as inflation has continued to fall, and Powell at his post-meeting press conference on Wednesday tried to square the circle.

From Reuters

“How do you square the circle between needing cash and hiking interest rates to keep the picture from spiraling out of control? In my view, there is no good solution.”

From Seattle Times