impossibility

impossibility — 名詞

1. The fact that something cannot exist, happen, or be done under any circumstances

1.名詞B2
釋義

不可能

無法做到的事情或無法達成的狀態

The fact that something cannot exist, happen, or be done under any circumstances; also, a specific task or situation that is not achievable no matter what approach is taken.

例句

Dr. Caleb Okonkwo says the impossibility of reversing climate change is now widely accepted.

Caleb Okonkwo 博士表示，扭轉氣候變遷的不可能性如今已被廣泛接受。

impossibility + of [gerund] for stating something cannot be done

For Arjun and his family, buying a home in central London was a financial impossibility.

對 Arjun 和他的家人來說，在倫敦市中心買房是一件財務上不可能的事。

同義詞
  • impracticality

    suggests something is not sensible or feasible in practice but may still be theoretically possible; weaker than impossibility

  • absurdity

    focuses on the idea being so unreasonable that it cannot be true, rather than being physically or logically impossible

  • hopelessness

    emotional tone — emphasizes the feeling of despair rather than objective impossibility

反義詞
  • possibility

    the direct opposite — something that can happen or be done

  • feasibility

    practical possibility, suggesting something is achievable with reasonable effort or resources

文法句型

impossibility + of + noun/gerund

impossibility + that-clause

a/an + adjective + impossibility

用法筆記

Frequently modified by adjectives such as 'absolute', 'logical', 'physical', 'virtual', 'near', and 'mathematical'. The countable form ('an impossibility') refers to a specific impossible task or situation, while the uncountable form ('the impossibility of...') stresses the abstract state. Register is neutral to formal; common in academic writing, journalism, and everyday speech without sounding overly technical.

常見錯誤

❌The impossibility to finish the project on time frustrated everyone.
✅The impossibility of finishing the project on time frustrated everyone.
💡'impossibility' takes 'of + gerund', not 'to + infinitive'.
❌It is an impossibility to happen.
✅It is an impossibility.
💡'impossibility' already conveys the idea of 'cannot happen'; adding 'to happen' is redundant.