Thesaurus results for IMPASSES

impasses

noun

plural of impasse

as in halts

a point in a struggle where neither side is capable of winning or willing to give in in their bitter custody battle, the divorcing couple are at a total impasse

Synonyms & Similar Words

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as in dilemmas

a difficult, puzzling, or embarrassing situation from which there is no easy escape the impossible impasse faced by those who opposed the war but did not want to seem disloyal to the troops

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

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.

Recent Examples of impasses California law bars law enforcement officers and firefighters from striking against public employers, instead providing dispute-resolution procedures for labor impasses. — Darrell Smith, Sacbee.com, 13 Aug. 2026 The second chapter intertwines misfortune and impasses. — Jacob Tanswell, New York Times, 10 June 2026 The Senate unanimously approved a resolution to withhold lawmakers’ pay during government shutdowns, aiming to encourage faster resolution of federal budget impasses after record-breaking closures. — Joey Cappelletti, Los Angeles Times, 14 May 2026 How long should these impasses between words, ideas, formal breakthroughs last, anyway, in any one spell of writing? — Dan Chiasson, The New York Review of Books, 22 Apr. 2026 While controllers may not be caught in the latest political game of chicken, proactively protecting these federal employees from paycheck lapses would prevent additional airport chaos during future funding impasses. — Jackson Shedelbower, Oc Register, 11 Mar. 2026 Some of the money is frozen due to budgetary or legal impasses. — Caio Delcolli, IndieWire, 26 Nov. 2025 Such impasses typically end when one party decides the political costs of keeping the government closed outweigh the concessions of opening it. — Prashant Rao, semafor.com, 11 Nov. 2025 YouTube has navigated similar impasses with other entertainment companies this year. — Savannah Salazar, Vulture, 30 Oct. 2025

Recent Examples of Synonyms for impasses

Noun

The automatic stay halts proceedings but doesn't compel creditors to undo pre-petition filings without operative effect.

— Jay Adkisson, Forbes.com, 27 June 2026
Since prolonged production halts can cause permanent damage to oil wells, shutting them down is typically a last resort.

— Jason Ma, Fortune, 15 June 2026

Definition of halts

Noun

Tired of budget stalemates, deficits and continuous acrimony in the state Capitol, California voters in 2010 started taking action to temper political gridlock and loosen the grip of entrenched special interests.

— Seema Mehta, Los Angeles Times, 17 Aug. 2026
The legislation's passage represented a rare moment of bipartisan achievement in a Congress that has been marked by obstruction and a series of stalemates.

— Kathryn Watson, CBS News, 24 June 2026

Definition of stalemates

Noun

Aemond, too, for that matter, while Daemon’s arrogance continues to get Team Black into all sorts of predicaments.

— Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 10 Aug. 2026
Rather than bridging shortfalls, both Seattle and Washington now face more difficult fiscal predicaments, Joblon said.

— Aldo Svaldi, Denver Post, 18 May 2026

Definition of predicaments

Noun

Across 10 trials, the system achieved a 90 percent autonomous success rate with four robots and 70 percent with eight, while recovering from navigation errors and formation deadlocks without human assistance.

— Jijo Malayil, Interesting Engineering, 10 July 2026
Having killed Downey, Amos cuts one of his deadlocks and puts it in Axel’s little red book.

— Rafaela Bassili, Vulture, 3 Dec. 2025

Definition of deadlocks

Noun

The meat from Kafi BBQ is locally sourced from halal farms and everything from the barbecue sauce, bread and pickles are made in-house at the restaurant.

— Maven Navarro, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 27 Aug. 2026
All of these have enough body and heft to stand up to the moisture from the pickles without turning watery in an hour or two.

— Shilpa Uskokovic, Bon Appetit Magazine, 20 Aug. 2026

Definition of pickles

Noun

Space Coast options to process satellites is limited, and has already faced logjams that can delay missions.

— Richard Tribou, The Orlando Sentinel, 13 Aug. 2026
At OpenAI, employees have a magic word to eliminate logjams and cut through the red tape that develops as the company gets larger.

— Alexei Oreskovic, Fortune, 12 Aug. 2026

Definition of logjams

Noun

McIlroy surged into the top-10 on Saturday with a 7-under 63, powered by nine birdies, including three in his final four holes.

— Gabby Herzig, New York Times, 30 Aug. 2026
The golf course would be transformed from its original layout of three courses with 36 holes to a single 18-hole championship course, per the outlet.

— Charlotte Phillipp, PEOPLE, 29 Aug. 2026

Definition of holes

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“Impasses.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/impasses. Accessed 2 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of impasses

noun

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