📖 I — The English dictionary · page 9

importation — Everyday, meaning 1: Bringing goods into a country from another country to sell or use.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: Something that has been brought in from somewhere else, such as a plant, animal or custom.↗ Example: The importation of tea from China made it popular in Britain.↗ · Australia has strict rules on the importation of fruit and plants.↗ · The rabbit was an importation that spread across Australia.↗ · The government banned the importation of ivory.↗ · Halloween costumes became popular partly as an importation from America.↗ · Importation costs make foreign goods more expensive.↗ · The existence of the tale in India renders it likely enough that it is not indigenous to the British Isles, but an Oriental importation.↗

importunate — Everyday, meaning 1: Importunate means asking again and again, pushing for something so hard that other people grow tired of it.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (old use) An importunate person will not take «no» for an answer.↗ Example: The importunate suitor would not leave the palace.↗ · The princess was tired of one more importunate suitor.↗ · The little dog was importunate, begging at every table.↗ · Faithful are the wounds of a friend; but the kisses of an enemy are importunate.↗ (Writings PRO.27.6, JPS 1917)↗

importunity — Everyday, meaning 1: Importunity is the habit of asking again and again, pestering someone until they give in.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: An importunity is one such pestering request.↗ Example: I could not bear the importunity of these flies.↗ · The father gave in to their importunities to get some peace.↗ · Her importunity wore down the old man at last.↗

impose — Everyday, meaning 1: To make a rule, tax or punishment that people must accept.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: To force your ideas or wishes on other people.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: (impose on) To ask too much of someone, causing them trouble, as in «I don't want to impose».↗ Example: The council imposed a speed limit near the school.↗ · The referee imposed a penalty.↗ · Don't impose your choice on everyone.↗ · I don't want to impose, but could I stay for tea?↗ · The government imposed a new tax on sugar.↗ · The castle was an imposing sight.↗ · Princes come from all quarters to ask her hand, and on one and all she imposes a condition.↗ · Also we announce to you, that touching any of the priests and Levites, the singers, porters, Nethinim, or servants of this house of God, it shall not be lawful to impose tribute, impost, or toll, upon them.↗ (Writings EZR.7.24, JPS 1917)↗

imposition — Everyday, meaning 1: An unfair or unwelcome demand on someone's time, help or kindness.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: The act of making a rule, tax or punishment apply to people.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: (UK, old-fashioned school) An extra piece of written work given as a punishment.↗ Example: I hope it's not an imposition to ask you to feed the cat.↗ · Staying for a whole week would be an imposition on our hosts.↗ · The imposition of a new tax made people angry.↗ · The teacher gave him an imposition of a hundred lines.↗ · Helping you is no imposition at all.↗ · The imposition of a curfew kept everyone indoors.↗

impossibility — Everyday, meaning 1: Impossibility is the state of being impossible: something that cannot happen or cannot be done.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: An impossibility is a thing that cannot happen.↗ Example: Rolling a 7 on one normal dice is an impossibility.↗ · Winning without practice is close to an impossibility.↗ · A square circle is a logical impossibility.↗ · Being in two places at once is a physical impossibility.↗ · Getting a ticket was almost an impossibility.↗ · The impossibility of the task made them want to try harder.↗ · They declared that the problem would never be solved, that the thing was an impossibility.↗

impossible — Everyday, meaning 1: Not able to happen or be done: «It's impossible to be in two places at once».↗ Everyday, meaning 2: Very difficult to deal with: «You're impossible today!».↗ Everyday, meaning 3: (the impossible) Something that cannot be done: «They tried to do the impossible».↗ Example: It is impossible to roll a 7 with one normal dice.↗ · Nothing is impossible if you keep trying!↗ · It's impossible to see in this fog.↗ · My little brother is impossible when he's tired.↗ · Flying like a bird is impossible for people without a machine.↗ · The puzzle seemed impossible, but we solved it.↗ · Mark the event "the sun rises in the west" as impossible.↗ · “It is impossible!” cried the King.↗ · Although the Sefer Tetzirah is exceedingly hard to understand, the solution of its many diflicalties is not impossible.↗ (Mordell, The Origin of Letters and Numerals according to Sefer Yetzirah (1914))↗ · If it has the sound oi ? it is impossible that it should also have the sound of £..↗ (Mordell, The Origin of Letters and Numerals according to Sefer Yetzirah (1914))↗ · It is, therefore, not at all impossible that the prophet Jeremiah and his grandson Ben Sira studied its philosophy.↗ (Mordell, The Origin of Letters and Numerals according to Sefer Yetzirah (1914))↗

impossibly — Everyday, meaning 1: Impossibly means in a way that cannot happen or be done.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: Impossibly also means extremely or unbelievably, so much that it seems impossible: «impossibly tall».↗ Example: The giraffe's neck looked impossibly long.↗ · The puzzle was impossibly hard, so we asked for a hint.↗ · The skyscraper rose impossibly high into the clouds.↗ · Her handwriting was impossibly small.↗ · The magician seemed to float impossibly above the stage.↗ · The queue for the ride was impossibly long.↗ · The cake was impossibly delicious.↗

impost — In Jewish tradition, meaning 1: A tax or duty charged on goods or by a ruler.↗ Example: There have been mighty kings also over Jerusalem, who have ruled over all the country beyond the River; and tribute, impost, and toll, was paid unto them.↗ (Writings EZR.4.20, JPS 1917)↗ · Be it known now unto the king, that, if this city be builded, and the walls finished, they will not pay tribute, impost, or toll, and so thou wilt endamage the revenue of the kings.↗ (Writings EZR.4.13, JPS 1917)↗ · Also we announce to you, that touching any of the priests and Levites, the singers, porters, Nethinim, or servants of this house of God, it shall not be lawful to impose tribute, impost, or toll, upon them.↗ (Writings EZR.7.24, JPS 1917)↗

imposter — In Jewish tradition, meaning 1: A person who pretends to be someone else, or a fraud.↗ Example: That frustrateth the tokens of the imposters, and maketh diviners mad; that turneth wise men backward, and maketh their knowledge foolish; (Prophets ISA.44.25, JPS 1917)↗

impostor — Everyday, meaning 1: An impostor is a person who pretends to be someone else in order to cheat people.↗ Example: The impostor said he was a prince.↗ · The king was fooled by two impostors.↗ · Do not trust the impostor; he is a liar.↗

impotent — Everyday, meaning 1: Impotent means without power or strength, unable to do anything to stop or help.↗ Example: Once the sword was raised, the giant was impotent.↗ · Without his magic the wizard was impotent.↗ · I felt impotent when I could not reach the rope.↗

impound — Everyday, meaning 1: (law) To impound means for the police or officials to take something away and keep it until rules are followed, such as a car, a dog or goods.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: To impound water means to hold it back behind a dam or wall, making a reservoir.↗ Example: The police impounded the car because it had no insurance.↗ · The stray dog was impounded until its owner came.↗ · Customs officers impounded the fake trainers.↗ · The dam impounds the river to make a reservoir.↗ · Dad had to pay a fine to get the car back from the impound.↗ · The ship was impounded at the port.↗

impoverish — In Jewish tradition, meaning 1: To make someone poor, or to take away what they own.↗ Example: Behold, the Lord will impoverish her, and He will smite her power into the sea; and she shall be devoured with fire.↗ (Prophets ZEC.9.4, JPS 1917)↗

impracticability — Everyday, meaning 1: The quality of being impossible or almost impossible to do in practice.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (formal) Something that cannot be done because of real-world limits like cost, time or difficulty.↗ Example: The council dropped the bridge plan because of its impracticability.↗ · The impracticability of moving the whole school in one day was obvious.↗ · Owing to the impracticability of the trip, it was cancelled.↗ · The report explained the impracticability of building on the marsh.↗ · My teacher pointed out the impracticability of feeding a hundred pets.↗ · Everyone could see the impracticability of a swimming pool on the roof.↗

impracticable — Everyday, meaning 1: Impossible to do or carry out in practice, even if it sounds good.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (of a road or path) Impossible to use or travel on: the road was impracticable after the flood.↗ Example: The plan to build a tunnel to the island proved impracticable.↗ · Walking across the desert in a day is impracticable.↗ · The flooded road was impracticable for cars.↗ · The idea was clever but impracticable.↗ · It was impracticable to count every grain of sand.↗ · Carrying all the books home at once was impracticable, so we took two trips.↗

impractical — Everyday, meaning 1: Not sensible or useful in real life; hard to use or do.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: Describing a person who is not good at everyday practical tasks or who has unrealistic ideas.↗ Example: White trainers are impractical for a muddy field trip.↗ · A glass lunchbox is impractical for a school bag.↗ · His idea was fun but impractical.↗ · Long dresses are impractical for climbing trees.↗ · Grandad says I'm impractical because I can't fix my bike.↗ · It would be impractical to walk to school in the snow, so we took the bus.↗

imprecation — Everyday, meaning 1: An imprecation is a curse, an angry wish that bad things will happen to someone.↗ Example: The witch shouted an imprecation at the thief.↗ · The king called down solemn imprecations on the murderer.↗ · Her imprecations could be heard across the valley.↗

imprecise — Everyday, meaning 1: Not exact or accurate; rough or vague.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: Not clearly expressed: imprecise instructions.↗ Example: Measuring with your hand span is imprecise.↗ · «About a hundred» is an imprecise answer; the exact answer is 97.↗ · The instructions were imprecise, so we built the model wrong.↗ · Old maps were imprecise about the size of countries.↗ · Use a ruler; guessing is too imprecise.↗ · His description of the thief was imprecise.↗

impregnate — Everyday, meaning 1: To soak or fill something completely with a substance: wood impregnated with oil.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (biology) To make a female animal pregnant, so that a baby starts to grow inside her.↗ Example: The fence posts were impregnated with a chemical to stop them rotting.↗ · The cloth was impregnated with wax to make it waterproof.↗ · The bandage is impregnated with antiseptic.↗ · The air was impregnated with the smell of smoke.↗ · Farmers keep the bull separate until they want the cows impregnated.↗ · The matches are impregnated with a chemical that helps them light.↗

impress — Everyday, meaning 1: To impress someone is to make them admire you or feel strongly that something is very good.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: To impress something on someone is to make them understand clearly how important it is.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: To impress a mark or pattern is to press it into something soft.↗ Everyday, meaning 4: (history) To impress men was to force them to serve in the navy.↗ Everyday, meaning 5: If someone is impressed by an argument or reason, it has persuaded or moved them to agree or change their mind.↗ Example: She impressed the judges with her singing.↗ · I was really impressed by your story.↗ · He tried to impress his friends by doing a wheelie.↗ · Mum impressed on us that we must never talk to strangers online.↗ · We impressed leaves into the clay to make patterns.↗ · The new pupil's maths impressed the whole class.↗ · In old times, sailors were impressed into the navy.↗ · The King, impressed by these considerations, promised that he would think over the matter.↗ · And this is the impress of the whole, twenty-one letters, all from one the Aleph.↗ (Sefer Yetzirah, Westcott 1887)↗ · Twenty-two letters are formed by the voice, impressed on the air, and audibly uttered in five situations, in the throat, guttural sounds; in the palate, palatals; by the tongue, linguals; through the teeth, dentals; and by the lips, labial sounds.↗ (Sefer Yetzirah, Westcott 1887)↗

impression — Everyday, meaning 1: An impression is the feeling or idea you get about someone or something, especially at first.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: An impression is a mark or shape pressed into a soft surface, like a footprint in mud.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: An impression is a funny copy of how a famous person or animal speaks or acts.↗ Everyday, meaning 4: To make an impression is to have a strong effect on people.↗ Example: My first impression of the new teacher was that she was kind.↗ · The dinosaur left an impression of its foot in the mud, which became a fossil.↗ · He does a great impression of a monkey.↗ · Try to make a good impression at your interview.↗ · I had the impression that she was upset.↗ · We pressed leaves into clay to make impressions.↗ · The film made a big impression on me.↗ · “All look your best,” Peter warned them; “first impressions are awfully important.”↗

impressionist — Everyday, meaning 1: A performer who copies the voices and ways of famous people for entertainment.↗ Everyday, meaning 2: (art) An Impressionist is one of a group of painters in France in the late 1800s, such as Claude Monet and Pierre-Auguste Renoir, who painted light and colour quickly in short brushstrokes to show a moment as it looked.↗ Everyday, meaning 3: (adjective) In this style.↗ e.g. Impressionist paintings; also used for some music, like Debussy's.↗ Example: Monet was a famous Impressionist who painted water lilies.↗ · We painted sunflowers in an Impressionist style with short dabs.↗ · The Impressionists liked to paint outdoors to catch the light.↗ · The impressionist did the voices of five famous footballers.↗ · Impressionist paintings look blurry up close and clear from far away.↗ · My uncle is a great impressionist; he sounds just like our grandad.↗