feel insurmountable

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "feel insurmountable" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used when expressing a sense of overwhelming difficulty or challenges that seem impossible to overcome. Example: "At times, the obstacles in my path can feel insurmountable, making it hard to stay motivated."

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Science

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

7 human-written examples

"Even small distances in those situations can feel insurmountable".

The New York Times

A few years' experience can make that chasm feel insurmountable.

The Guardian

When you are stranded in London, the distance between a chaotic train station full of angry commuters and my family can feel insurmountable.

The Guardian - Money

When self-doubt takes over, the struggle begins to feel insurmountable.

Huffington Post

No planning, or guidance, or support to make the mega-changes needed to turn their lives around, changes that when you're a kid with no resources feel insurmountable.

Huffington Post

"Lose weight, exercise more, eat better… These are what we might think of as anemic intentions because they are so vague as not to have any real strength or force," Tim says, "So, it's not so much that these goals feel insurmountable because of pressure, but that they're are typically our most difficult because we have failed many times before".

Vice

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

53 human-written examples

The thought of transitioning to female, let alone getting a degree, or career, felt insurmountable.

The Guardian

Cleveland was tired of sleeping on a sewage-soaked floor, far from her kids, for traffic debts that felt insurmountable.

The New Yorker

Really, they have heard about everything, it seems, so that presenting the novel, the outré, the unforeseen, quickly becomes a challenge that feels insurmountable.

The New York Times

Even now, when something feels insurmountable, I remember how it felt to sit near the exit of a tiny plane and see the North and South Islands thousands of feet below.

The Guardian - Travel

Most of my salary went to paying her tuition, but it never felt insurmountable.

The New York Times

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Use "feel insurmountable" to convey a strong sense of overwhelming difficulty, particularly when describing emotional or psychological barriers. For instance, "The grief she felt after the loss of her loved one made every task feel insurmountable."

Common error

Avoid using "feel insurmountable" in situations that are merely challenging, not truly overwhelming. Overuse can diminish its impact and make your writing seem melodramatic.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "feel insurmountable" functions as a subjective descriptor. It expresses a personal perception of a challenge being impossibly difficult. Ludwig confirms its correctness and usability. The phrase often reflects an emotional or psychological state rather than an objective assessment.

Expression frequency: Uncommon

Frequent in

News & Media

62%

Huffington Post

13%

Vice

8%

Less common in

Science

8%

Wiki

1%

The New Yorker

1%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, the phrase "feel insurmountable" is used to express a subjective sense of overwhelming difficulty, implying a challenge that seems impossible to overcome. Ludwig indicates that the phrase is correct and acceptable in written English. It frequently appears in News & Media, often reflecting emotional or psychological states. Alternatives include "seem impossible to overcome" or "appear overwhelmingly difficult", offering similar meanings with slight differences in emphasis. The key is to use it judiciously, avoiding overuse in less dramatic contexts. This will allow the phrase to retain its full impact when genuinely needed.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

seem impossible to overcome

Changes the verb to "seem" and adds "to overcome" for clarity, slightly increasing the formality.

appear overwhelmingly difficult

Replaces "insurmountable" with "overwhelmingly difficult", focusing on the magnitude of difficulty.

present an overwhelming challenge

Shifts the focus to the challenge itself being overwhelming, rather than a feeling.

appear to be an impossible task

Emphasizes the impossibility of the task, changing the structure to focus on the task.

feel beyond one's capabilities

Focuses on the feeling of lacking the ability to succeed, highlighting personal limitation.

feel like an uphill battle

Introduces a metaphor of a difficult climb, adding a sense of ongoing struggle.

feel like a mountain to climb

Uses a mountain metaphor to illustrate the height and difficulty of a challenge.

feel as if facing a brick wall

Employs the metaphor of a solid barrier, conveying the sense of being blocked.

feel utterly hopeless

Shifts the emphasis to the feeling of hopelessness that arises from facing such challenges.

feel completely defeated before starting

Highlights the sense of pre-emptive failure, emphasizing a lack of motivation.

FAQs

How can I use "feel insurmountable" in a sentence?

Use "feel insurmountable" to describe challenges that create a sense of being too difficult to overcome. For example, "The task of rebuilding the business after the crisis began to "feel insurmountable"".

What are some alternatives to "feel insurmountable"?

You can use alternatives like "seem impossible to overcome", "appear overwhelmingly difficult", or "present an overwhelming challenge" depending on the context.

Is it better to say "feel insurmountable" or "seem insurmountable"?

Both "feel insurmountable" and "seem insurmountable" are correct, but they have slightly different nuances. "Feel insurmountable" emphasizes the subjective emotional experience of the difficulty, while "seem insurmountable" focuses on the objective appearance of the difficulty.

What's the difference between "feel insurmountable" and "feel overwhelming"?

"Feel insurmountable" suggests a barrier so high that it appears impossible to overcome. "Feel overwhelming" indicates a sense of being burdened or overloaded, but not necessarily defeated. The best choice depends on whether the challenge is perceived as merely burdensome or actually impossible.