The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 2 plus 2 plus 4 plus 2 plus 2 letter word IT IS WHAT IT IS
I
T
I
S
W
H
A
T
I
T
I
S
More clues leading to the result IT IS WHAT IT IS
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "The situation can’t be improved" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case the situation can’t be improved = it is what it is.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.