Stalemate, deadlock (7)
I believe the answer is:
impasse
<span class="explanation-format__ClueExplanation">I believe this clue is a double definition.<br/ ><br/ >'<span class="explanation-format__original">stalemate</span>' is the first definition.<br/ ><span class="explanation-format__explanation">(I know that stalemate can be written as impasse)</span><br/ ><br/ >'<span class="explanation-format__original">deadlock</span>' is the second definition.<br/ ><span class="explanation-format__explanation">(I know that deadlock can be written as impasse)</span><br/ ><br/ ></span>
(Other definitions for impasse that I've seen before include "hopeless situation?" , "I permit no further progress" , "hopeless difficulty" , "Deadlock or stand-off" , "There's no way past it" .)