0
Soheil1 Posted 13 years ago
Vocabulary
Insurmountable
Hi.
In:
"For Black it's either this move, or 4...O-O, which would lead to 5.Bxd8 and an insurmountable 10 to 3 advantage in force for White.Even so, Black is doomed."(from Play Winning Chess, p.137),
what does 'insurmountable' mean?
Thanks in advance
In:
"For Black it's either this move, or 4...O-O, which would lead to 5.Bxd8 and an insurmountable 10 to 3 advantage in force for White.Even so, Black is doomed."(from Play Winning Chess, p.137),
what does 'insurmountable' mean?
Thanks in advance
Top answer
" - here it means that this move would give the White player such an advantage, that would be very difficult for the other player to catch up/win the game.
- " - here it means that this move would give the White player such an advantage, that would be very difficult for the other player to catch up/win the game.
Get the Weekly English Kit 📬
New words, one handy idiom, and a 2-minute quiz — delivered to your inbox to keep your streak alive.
11 Answers
0
insurmountable - that cannot be dealt with successfully; synonym: insuperable (Oxford Dictionary)
insurmountable - that cannot be surmounted/overcome (The Free Dictionary)
"...an insurmountable 10 to 3 advantage...." - here it means that this move would give the White player such an advantage, that would be very difficult for the other player to catch up/win the game.
insurmountable - that cannot be surmounted/overcome (The Free Dictionary)
"...an insurmountable 10 to 3 advantage...." - here it means that this move would give the White player such an advantage, that would be very difficult for the other player to catch up/win the game.
00
0
This adjective doesn't exist. You can just use the synonym that the dictionary gives -> insuperable
Compensate and compensatory don't really fit the context in my opinion.
Compensate and compensatory don't really fit the context in my opinion.
00
0
The adjective you mentioned doesn't exist. The adjectives that derive from "to compensate" are compensatory or compensative (The Free Dictionary) and I'm not sure about the negative form.
In the phrase above you need the preposition "for" at the end. An advantage in force that cannot be compensated for. Even so, I think "An advantage in force that cannot be overcome"
In the phrase above you need the preposition "for" at the end. An advantage in force that cannot be compensated for. Even so, I think "An advantage in force that cannot be overcome"
00
Stoyanov: In the phrase above you need the preposition "for" at the end. An advantage in force that cannot be compensated for. Even so, I think "An advantage in force that cannot be overcome" sounds much better and is more common.
I agree. Insurmountable is a strong, emphatic word. Notice how in the orig
I agree. Insurmountable is a strong, emphatic word. Notice how in the orig
00
Blue JayStoyanov: In the phrase above you need the preposition "for" at the end. An advantage in force that cannot be compensated for. Even so, I think "An advantage in force that cannot be overcome" sounds much better and is more common.I agree. Insurmountable is a strong, emphatic word. Notice how in the original passage it talked about "an insurmountable ... advantage
00
Consider a more concrete example.
A 20-foot wall is insurmountable. You can't start talking about it using 'cannot be compensated for'.
Your chess sentence is just a more figurative usage, but the same comment applies.
Clive
A 20-foot wall is insurmountable. You can't start talking about it using 'cannot be compensated for'.
Your chess sentence is just a more figurative usage, but the same comment applies.
Clive
00
The persian adjective for wall would have no meaning for a material advantage in chess.
00
Does 'an insurmountable advantage in force' mean that nothing can be done about it and the game is almost over?
0
Related Questions