What does impossibly mean?
“Impossibly” means “in a way that cannot feasibly happen or be achieved,” while also serving as a strong intensifier. It is frequently used with adjectives describing extreme difficulty, speed, size, height, narrowness, or improbability: an “impossibly difficult” task may be beyond the abilities of the available tools or people. The word generally implies a more absolute obstacle than “extremely,” though context determines how strongly it constrains the situation. In careful or literary prose, “not impossibly” has the unusual reversed sense of “possibly” or “perhaps,” as in “the object is not impossibly a ceremonial relic.” “Impossibly” is useful when a writer wants to convey both exceptional intensity and a sense of defiance, whether describing physical limits, human performance, or the boundaries of what can realistically be achieved.
adverbIn a way that is impossible or cannot feasibly happen; to an extreme or apparently incredible degree.
- To an extreme or apparently incredible degree, especially in a way that is difficult or impossible to achieve.
- In the literary construction “not impossibly,” meaning possibly or perhaps.
"The task was impossibly difficult for anyone working alone."
"The narrow passage was impossibly tight for the equipment to pass through."
"The evidence is not impossibly the work of a skilled forger."
Born from the Latin idea of something that cannot be done, “impossibly” gives ordinary adjectives an almost impossible extra degree.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does impossibly come from?
“Impossibly” was formed in English by adding the adverbial suffix -ly to “impossible.” The adjective “impossible” came through Old French from Latin impossibilis, meaning “that cannot be done,” formed from in-, meaning “not,” and posse, meaning “to be able.” The same Latin root also underlies related English forms such as “possible” and “possibility.”
Related word forms
How impossibly is actually used
Usually stronger than words such as “very” or “extremely” and commonly used with adjectives such as “difficult,” “fast,” “narrow,” and “high.” In the formal construction “not impossibly,” it means “possibly” or “perhaps.”
Easily confused with impossibly
“Impossibly” describes something that cannot happen or be done, whereas “improbably” describes something unlikely to happen but still possible.