it sets impossible

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "it sets impossible" is not correct in written English.
It seems to be an incomplete thought and lacks clarity. Example: "The new policy sets impossible standards for employees to meet."

⚠ May contain grammatical issues

News & Media

Science

Wiki

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

1 human-written examples

The education law has been praised for focusing attention on achievement gaps, but it has also generated tremendous opposition, especially from educators, who contend that it sets impossible goals for students and schools and humiliates students and educators when they fall short.

The New York Times

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

59 human-written examples

It set impossible goals, then established punishments for schools that could not do the impossible.

Huffington Post

By replacing its more ideological proposals with the issue of corruption, Podemos may have attracted a huge crowd, but it also set impossible standards of purity for itself.

The Guardian - Opinion

"It sets near- impossible standards for justifying bright-line ownership limits".

The New York Times

There is already an official rule that calls for a pitcher to deliver the ball within twelve seconds of getting it back, but it is never enforced, likely because it sets an impossible standard: in the majors, only twenty-four pitchers with ten or more innings managed to average less than twenty seconds, let alone twelve, per pitch last season.

The New Yorker

I appreciate aiming high, but setting impossible expectations means setting no expectations".

The New York Times

My father and I eventually learned to sublimate that instinct by setting impossible goals.

The New York Times - Magazine

Setting impossible expectations is one of the five telltale techniques of climate denial.

The Guardian

James Gulliver Hancock is one of those people who set impossible tasks for themselves that evolve into blogs and then into books.

The New York Times

And they set impossible expectations of research: when scientists produce one level of certainty, the pseudoscientists insist they achieve another.

The New Yorker

But setting impossible targets makes real gains even harder to achieve.

Forbes

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

When describing goals or standards, use stronger verbs like "establish", "create", or "impose" with adjectives like "unattainable" or "unrealistic" for clarity.

Common error

Avoid using "sets" directly with adjectives like "impossible". This phrasing can sound awkward. Instead, use "sets" with nouns like "standards", "goals", or "expectations" followed by an adjective to describe them: "sets impossible standards".

Linguistic Context

The phrase's intended function is to describe the act of establishing something that is unachievable. However, Ludwig AI indicates that the phrasing itself is grammatically incorrect. A more correct phrasing would include a noun such as "standards", "goals", or "expectations".

Expression frequency: Rare

Frequent in

News & Media

60%

Science

20%

Wiki

20%

Less common in

Formal & Business

0%

Academia

0%

Encyclopedias

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, while the phrase "it sets impossible" aims to describe the establishment of unachievable goals, it's grammatically flawed and uncommon. As Ludwig AI highlights, it's more appropriate to use constructions like "it sets impossible standards" or alternatives such as "it establishes unattainable" for clarity and correctness. The phrase appears primarily in news and general contexts, but its infrequent usage suggests careful consideration of alternative phrasings is warranted.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

it establishes unattainable

Replaces "sets impossible" with a more grammatically sound alternative using "establishes" and "unattainable".

it creates insurmountable

Uses "creates" and "insurmountable" to convey the idea of something being impossible to overcome.

it poses unrealistic

Employs "poses" and "unrealistic" to suggest that something is not practical or achievable.

it defines unachievable

Substitutes with "defines" and "unachievable" to indicate that something cannot be reached.

it imposes impossible

Uses "imposes" to suggest the setting of unrealistic conditions or burdens.

it prescribes unfeasible

Suggests that the phrase demands something that is not practical

it dictates unrealizable

Synonymous with "imposes impossible", but with a sense of imposing something abstract.

it necessitates unworkable

Emphasizes the practical difficulties of achieving the imposed standards.

it demands unattainable

The phrase is replaced by demand and unattainable which suggests requirement that is difficult to meet.

it enacts unachievable

Replaces "sets impossible" with enacting something that is impossible.

FAQs

How can I correctly use the phrase to describe the act of making goals or standards difficult?

Instead of saying "it sets impossible", rephrase it using a more grammatically sound structure such as "it sets impossible standards" or "it creates unattainable goals".

What are some alternatives to "it sets impossible"?

You can use alternatives like "it establishes unattainable", "it creates insurmountable", or "it poses unrealistic" depending on the context.

Is "it sets impossible" grammatically correct?

No, the phrasing "it sets impossible" is not grammatically correct. It's better to say "it sets impossible standards" or use a similar construction.

What's the difference between "it sets impossible standards" and "it has impossible standards"?

"It sets impossible standards" refers to the act of establishing those standards, while "it has impossible standards" describes a state of possessing those standards. The former is about the action, the latter about the current situation.