1
a
: a predicament affording no obvious escape
b
: deadlock
2
: an impassable road or way : cul-de-sac
Synonyms
Examples of impasse in a Sentence
The players are poised to strike after Thursday's games because they believe, with good reason, that if no agreement is reached by the end of the post-season, the owners will declare an impasse …
—
Murray Chass, New York Times, 9 Aug. 1994
We seem to have been forced into an impasse. We need to understand why space-time singularities have the structures that they appear to have; but space-time singularities are regions where our understanding of physics has reached its limits.
—Roger Penrose, The Emperor's New Mind, 1989
I think the civil rights movement in its early and middle years offered the best way out of America's racial impasse: in this society, race must not be a source of advantage or disadvantage for anyone.
—Shelby Steele, Harper's, June 1988
An arbitrator was called in to break the impasse.
She had reached an impasse in her career.
Murray Chass, New York Times, 9 Aug. 1994
We seem to have been forced into an impasse. We need to understand why space-time singularities have the structures that they appear to have; but space-time singularities are regions where our understanding of physics has reached its limits.
—Roger Penrose, The Emperor's New Mind, 1989
I think the civil rights movement in its early and middle years offered the best way out of America's racial impasse: in this society, race must not be a source of advantage or disadvantage for anyone.
—Shelby Steele, Harper's, June 1988
An arbitrator was called in to break the impasse.
She had reached an impasse in her career.
Recent Examples on the Web
After reaching an impasse in contract extension negotiations over the summer (Butler possesses a $52.4 million player option for 2025-26), the relationship between Butler and Miami has soured mightily.
—Michael Gfoeller and David H. Rundell, Newsweek, 14 Jan. 2025
After a long slide toward irrelevance, though, the show is on its last fishnet leg, leaving her at an impasse.
—Manohla Dargis, New York Times, 9 Jan. 2025
Democrats piled on the Musk taunts in the midst of the impasse over government funding, which was solved just before the deadline on Friday.
—Alex Gangitano, The Hill, 29 Dec. 2024
In a move that has stunned Washington, President-elect Donald Trump is now urging Congress to eliminate the debt ceiling, dramatically shaking up talks among lawmakers, who are at an impasse over federal spending and government funding, which is scheduled to lapse this weekend.
—Robert Costa, CBS News, 19 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for impasse 
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Michael Gfoeller and David H. Rundell, Newsweek, 14 Jan. 2025
After a long slide toward irrelevance, though, the show is on its last fishnet leg, leaving her at an impasse.
—Manohla Dargis, New York Times, 9 Jan. 2025
Democrats piled on the Musk taunts in the midst of the impasse over government funding, which was solved just before the deadline on Friday.
—Alex Gangitano, The Hill, 29 Dec. 2024
In a move that has stunned Washington, President-elect Donald Trump is now urging Congress to eliminate the debt ceiling, dramatically shaking up talks among lawmakers, who are at an impasse over federal spending and government funding, which is scheduled to lapse this weekend.
—Robert Costa, CBS News, 19 Dec. 2024
See all Example Sentences for impasse
Dictionary Entries Near impasse
Cite this Entry
“Impasse.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/impasse. Accessed 20 Jan. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
Legal Definition
impasse
noun
im·passe
ˈim-ˌpas, im-ˈpas 
: a point in especially labor negotiations at which reaching an agreement is impossible because neither party is willing to compromise or change position
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