great imposition

USAGE SUMMARY

"great imposition" is correct and usable in written English. You can use it to describe a significant burden or demand placed on someone. Example: "The new regulations were seen as a great imposition on small businesses." Alternative expressions include "heavy burden" and "significant demand."

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Formal & Business

Science

Encyclopedias

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

7 human-written examples

But nor will these prescriptions represent any great imposition on Pakistan's sovereignty.

The Economist

"You know, if you think about it, it's no great imposition once you get used to it.

The New York Times

Almost every city employee has to go through the finger-imaging procedure, Mr. Bloomberg said, so to ask that of "people who are receiving things, rather than dedicating their lives to make it better, is hardly something that's a great imposition or that anybody should feel stigmatized about".

The New York Times

Lest I be misunderstood—I can hear someone sneering "look at mister fancy man who is too good to clean up after himself!"—scraping a plate and putting it in a bucket is no great imposition.

Forbes

This is a great imposition.

HuffPost

For my part, I don't see forcing the government to justify the long-term detention of an individual in a court of law as a great imposition on the most powerful nation in the history of the world.

HuffPost

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

53 human-written examples

That is, one strain relies predominantly on withdrawal of sympathetic tone, whereas the HR response of the other strain is principally derived from a greater imposition of parasympathetic tone.

Environmental Health Perspectives

Because both signals convey the same programming, they have argued, it would be too great an imposition on the cable operators.

The New York Times

All of Ikal's 30 villas are tucked away like this it's almost impossible to sight another human being without leaving your own area and the greatest sensory imposition is the crashing of the Caribbean waves.

Forbes

I realise that many of you consider such effort to be far too great of an imposition on your very valuable time and would like to apologise for any incovenience caused by our speedy, free service.

The Guardian - Sport

Great leaders shun both imposition and indifference.

The New York Times

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Pair with negative qualifiers like 'no' or 'hardly' to minimize a request and make it seem more reasonable to the audience.

Common error

Ensure you use 'imposition' when referring to something being forced or placed upon others. Do not use it as a synonym for 'opposition', which refers to resistance or disagreement against an idea.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "great imposition" functions as a noun phrase, typically serving as the subject complement or direct object within a sentence. It combines the intensive adjective 'great' with the noun 'imposition' to quantify the severity of a task or rule. According to Ludwig AI, it is often used to evaluate the fairness of a requirement.

Expression frequency: Uncommon

Frequent in

News & Media

65%

Formal & Business

20%

Science

10%

Less common in

Encyclopedias

3%

Academia

1%

Social Media

1%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

Ludwig AI confirms that "great imposition" is a correct and effective phrase for describing significant burdens or demands. Analysis of the search results shows that it is a versatile term used across a variety of high-authority domains, ranging from economic commentary in The Economist to social etiquette in Forbes. It is particularly useful in formal writing when weighing the severity of a requirement, often appearing in the negative ("no great imposition") to justify a change or in the affirmative to signal a grievance. Overall, it serves as a sophisticated synonym for terms like "<a href="/s/heavy+burden" target="_blank" rel="alternative">heavy burden" or "<a href="/s/significant+demand" target="_blank" rel="alternative">significant demand" and is perfectly safe for professional use.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

significant burden

More common in policy and academic contexts to describe a heavy load.

heavy imposition

Increases the intensity of the demand being forced upon someone.

major inconvenience

Shifts the focus slightly from the act of imposing to the resulting difficulty.

considerable demand

Uses a more neutral tone focusing on the level of effort required.

undue burden

A legal and formal term implying the burden is unfair or excessive.

serious intrusion

Emphasizes the violation of privacy or personal space.

substantial hardship

Focuses on the suffering or difficulty caused by the imposition.

great inconvenience

Slightly more colloquial while maintaining the scale of the issue.

taxing requirement

Highlights the draining nature of the specific task or rule.

excessive demand

Explicitly labels the request as being too much or over the limit.

FAQs

How do I use "great imposition" in a sentence?

You can use it to describe a burden, such as: "Asking the staff to work on a holiday was seen as a great imposition."

What can I say instead of "great imposition"?

You can use alternatives like "<a href="/s/significant+burden" target="_blank" rel="alternative">significant burden", "<a href="/s/major+inconvenience" target="_blank" rel="alternative">major inconvenience" or "<a href="/s/heavy+demand" target="_blank" rel="alternative">heavy demand" depending on the context.

Is "great imposition" formal enough for business writing?

Yes, it is highly appropriate for professional and formal settings. It is often found in business journals and news reports to describe the impact of regulations.

What is the difference between "great imposition" and "greatest imposition"?

The phrase "great imposition" describes a single significant burden, while "<a href="/s/greatest+imposition" target="_blank" rel="alternative">greatest imposition" is a superlative used to identify the most severe burden among several options.