Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- adjective Impossible to surmount; insuperable.
from The Century Dictionary.
- Not surmountable; incapable of being surmounted, passed over, or overcome.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- adjective Incapable of being passed over, surmounted, or overcome; insuperable.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- adjective Incapable of being passed over,
surmounted , orovercome ;insuperable ; as, insurmountable difficulty or obstacle.
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- adjective impossible to surmount
- adjective not capable of being surmounted or overcome
Etymologies
Sorry, no etymologies found.
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Examples
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Dean Knowles, the most senior dean in the country, said the cathedral clergy had been put "under a great deal of strain" as they faced what he described as "insurmountable issues" and that his position had become "untenable".
Telegraph.co.uk - Telegraph online, Daily Telegraph and Sunday Telegraph Victoria Ward 2011
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What would be the point of the remaining contests if Obama's lead after Tuesday in insurmountable?
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We were inclosed by a natural wall, rising steep on every side to a height which produced the idea of insurmountable confinement.
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But it was in implementing privatization, against odds that could only be called insurmountable, that
The Commanding Heights DANIEL YERGIN 1998
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But it was in implementing privatization, against odds that could only be called insurmountable, that he was to truly hone his skills.
THE COMMANDING HEIGHTS DANIEL YERGIN 1998
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Investors are interpreting the insouciance -- with Sarkozy saying that losing the AAA rating isn't "insurmountable" -- to mean that France has accepted the inevitable.
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We were inclosed by a natural wall, rising steep on every side to a height which produced the idea of insurmountable confinement.
Journey to the Western Islands of Scotland Samuel Johnson 1746
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Of course, as McIntyre himself notes, the last time there was a dust-up like this, it was over Thomas P.M. Barnett's Esquire piece on Admiral William "Fox" Fallon, and that obviously didn't pave the way to some kind of insurmountable firewall between military brass and reporters like Hastings.
Jamie McIntyre, Former Pentagon Correspondent, Backs Hastings And Admits A "Dirty Little Secret" 2010
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To suppose God is bound by time is necessary for your paradox to cause 'insurmountable' issues.
Wired Top Stories 2009
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Who would have thought that in an election with more than 2.8 million votes cast that a 225-vote margin would constitute an "insurmountable" lead?
With Recount Complete And More Ballots Counted, Franken's Lead Appears To Be Insurmountable 2009
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