impasse

• POS: Noun
• HYPHEN: im=passe

CIDE DICTIONARY

impasse, n. [F.].

 An impassable road or way; a blind alley; cul-de-sac; fig., a position or predicament affording no escape.
"The issue from the present impasse will, in all probability, proceed from below, not from above."  [Webster 1913 Suppl.]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

impasse, n. a position from which progress is impossible; deadlock.

Etymology

F (as IN-(1), passer PASS(1))

THESAURUS

impasse

bar, barrier, blank wall, blind alley, blind gut, block, blockade, blockage, bottleneck, box, cecum, choking, choking off, clog, congestion, constipation, corner, costiveness, cul-de-sac, dead end, dead-end street, deadlock, dilemma, embolism, embolus, extremity, fix, gorge, halt, hole, impediment, infarct, infarction, jam, obstacle, obstipation, obstruction, pickle, plight, pocket, scrape, sealing off, stalemate, stand, stand-off, standstill, stop, stoppage, strangulation