DictionaryAI

impossible

im-PAH-suh-buhl/ɪmˈpɑ.sə.bl̩/UKim-POS-i-buhl/ɪmˈpɒs.ɪ.bəl/

Noun pluralimpossibles

5 meanings of impossible

Practice

  1. 1
    adjective
    Not able to be done or to happen at all.

    Like trying to touch the sky with your hand: it just cannot be done.

    It is impossible to breathe underwater without special equipment.

    Climbing that wall without ropes seemed impossible to the children.

    UsageOften it is impossible to do something. To soften it, say almost impossible.

    Similarunachievable, unattainable, impracticable, unfeasible, hopeless

    Oppositepossible, feasible, achievable, attainable

    Note
  2. 2
    very difficultadjectivecolloquial
    So hard to deal with that you lose patience.

    Like a knot that gets tighter the more you try to untie it.

    My little brother was impossible all afternoon and would not listen.

    The new manager is impossible when things do not go his way.

    UsageMostly said about people: you're impossible!

    Similarunbearable, intolerable, insufferable, unmanageable, difficult

    Oppositeeasygoing, reasonable, manageable, agreeable

    Note
  3. 3
    nouncountable or uncountable
    Something that cannot be done or cannot happen.

    Like asking the sun to rise in the west.

    He is always trying to do the impossible.

    Asking for snow in summer is asking for the impossible.

    UsageUsually the impossible: do the impossible.

    Note

Less common meanings

  1. 4
    imaginary numberadjectivedated
    In older math, describing a number that is not a real number.

    Long ago, people thought the square root of minus one was an impossible number.

    Old math books called these numbers impossible because they did not seem real.

    Similarimaginary

    Oppositereal

    Note
  2. 5
    noun
    A skateboard move where the board turns end over end all the way around one of your feet.

Practice

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Origin

From Middle English impossible, which breaks down into im- plus possible.

Checked 5 Nov 2026 · 2 facts

  • English impossible comes from Middle English impossible. en.wiktionary.org
  • Middle English borrowed impossible from Old French, ultimately from Latin impossibilis. The English parts im- and possible provide an equivalent analysis, rather than the historical formation. en.wiktionary.org