impassable

adjective

im·​pass·​able (ˌ)im-ˈpa-sə-bəl How to pronounce impassable (audio)
variants or less commonly impassible
: incapable of being passed, traveled, crossed, or surmounted
impassability noun
impassableness noun
impassably adverb

Examples of impassable in a Sentence

The roads were made impassable by the flood. the road was impassable until snowplows cleared it
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
After Hurricane Helene: Helping others, one barbecue plate at a time With roads impassable and many still without power or communication, Hooper and his team decided to start giving away food. Tamia Boyd, Charlotte Observer, 28 Feb. 2025 Severe winter weather left roads and sidewalks impassable for school buses and students. Eleanor Nash, Kansas City Star, 8 Jan. 2025 With parts of some roads impassable in northwestern Pennsylvania, scores of travelers took refuge in the lobby and hallways of a Holiday Inn near I-90. CBS News, 1 Dec. 2024 Yet these stories, in which class divisions form impassable rifts and submission to the status quo comes at great psychic cost, have much to say about our contemporary reality. Camille Bromley, New York Times, 17 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for impassable

Word History

First Known Use

1562, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of impassable was in 1562

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Cite this Entry

“Impassable.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/impassable. Accessed 18 Mar. 2025.

Kids Definition

impassable

adjective
im·​pass·​able (ˈ)im-ˈpas-ə-bəl How to pronounce impassable (audio)
: impossible to pass, cross, or travel over
roads made impassable by the hurricane
impassability noun

More from Merriam-Webster on impassable

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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