How to Use unwinnable in a Sentence

unwinnable

adjective
  • So the quest for defeat against an unwinnable force.
    — Ira Winderman, Sun Sentinel, 10 Feb. 2026
  • An inside look at why the promising young star signed on for an unwinnable bout.
    — Dylan Hernández, Los Angeles Times, 3 Dec. 2023
  • Irizarry said that drug agents realized the war was unwinnable.
    — Cory Shaffer, cleveland, 14 Nov. 2022
  • Staying on the platform can mean having to play this unwinnable game.
    — Charlie Warzel, The Atlantic, 13 Feb. 2026
  • Fielder used his ultimate on Moira in a fight that was unwinnable.
    — Sean Collins, Dallas News, 31 May 2021
  • In contrast, parties rarely get involved in races for either safe or unwinnable seats.
    — Hans Hassell, Washington Post, 1 May 2018
  • The central theme of the film is the moral burden that falls on soldiers tasked with fighting an unwinnable war.
    — Sam Sweeney, National Review, 5 Sep. 2021
  • Black women have long been trapped in an unwinnable situation.
    — Essence, 1 Aug. 2024
  • Beauty is an unwinnable game, but vloggers and brands have managed to sell us on the feeling of beauty.
    — Chloe Arnold, Vox, 29 Nov. 2018
  • Israel cannot survive if it is engaged in endless, unwinnable wars with its neighbors.
    — Graham Allison, Foreign Affairs, 30 Aug. 2024
  • The Saudis want to find a face-saving escape from a costly war that seems unwinnable.
    — The Economist, 4 June 2020
  • His view has been that the war against the Taliban is unnecessary and unwinnable.
    — Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 6 July 2021
  • But hubris and inertia kept the Soviets bogged down in the unwinnable war for a few years still.
    — Sergey Radchenko, Foreign Affairs, 4 Dec. 2025
  • Over the last few seasons, fans and media have drawn clear boundaries for an unwinnable argument.
    — cleveland, 8 Dec. 2022
  • The war in Ukraine is unwinnable and could bring down the Russian economy.
    — Elliott Goat, TheWeek, 3 June 2026
  • It was seen as an unwinnable fight but two years ago, something incredible happened.
    — Mike Freeman, USA TODAY, 11 Mar. 2022
  • Clinton’s worldview is sincere, but this sounds like a recipe for another unwinnable war.
    — Michelle Goldberg, Slate Magazine, 7 Apr. 2017
  • But in Ukraine, Russia has burdened itself with an unwinnable war.
    — Michael Kimmage and Hanna Notte, Foreign Affairs, 12 Oct. 2023
  • Sometimes, fielding a candidate in an unwinnable race is not even about the candidate at all.
    — Rafi Schwartz, The Week, 12 June 2023
  • That sense of loss — of fighting in a war that felt unwinnable even at the time — was palpable to some veterans who have moved on from it.
    — John Ismay, New York Times, 5 Mar. 2020
  • But just because the war against misinformation may be unwinnable doesn’t mean it should be avoided.
    — Kevin Roose, New York Times, 2 Oct. 2017
  • That might make for a difficult opposition campaign, but far from an unwinnable one.
    — Michael Smolens, San Diego Union-Tribune, 24 Oct. 2025
  • Its blue metal body lurches forward, only to be yanked backward again and again—a slapstick war dance for an unwinnable war.
    — Andrea K. Scott, The New Yorker, 21 Apr. 2018
  • Our win should be a lesson to anyone who writes off some states as not worth fighting for—or deems some issues too tough or complex and thus, unwinnable.
    — Time, 17 Nov. 2022
  • Even our efforts at reform begin to feel like the latest round in an unwinnable, ageless struggle with power.
    — Adam Gopnik, New Yorker, 8 Dec. 2025
  • Such has been the unsolvable — and largely unwinnable — issue with looking back at the King of Pop’s life.
    — Lisa Respers France, CNN Money, 22 Apr. 2026
  • Fighting an unwinnable war, the Israeli Army turned arrogant and brutal.
    — Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 5 Aug. 2021
  • The mission the American people were sold was accomplished; the war that followed was unwinnable.
    — Ian Bremmer, Time, 20 Aug. 2021
  • Some view the strike as an important statement about their way of life, and others say the union has gone too far and is promoting an unwinnable, and to some unjust, fight.
    — Melissa Eddy, New York Times, 7 Dec. 2023
  • Did Snyder figure the game was pretty much unwinnable — especially the way his team fell apart early — and simply pull the plug?
    — Eric Walden, The Salt Lake Tribune, 30 Apr. 2021

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'unwinnable.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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