debatable

adjective

de·​bat·​able di-ˈbā-tə-bəl 

dē-

1

: claimed by more than one country

debatable border territory

2

a

: open to dispute : questionable

the debatable wisdom of his advice

b

: open to debate

3

: capable of being debated

debatably

di-ˈbā-tə-blē 

dē-

adverb

Synonyms

• arguable
• controvertible
• disputable
• doubtable
• doubtful
• issuable
• moot
• negotiable
• questionable

Examples of debatable in a Sentence

it's always debatable which college football team is really number one, since there's more than one ranking system

the debatable wisdom of going back for another helping from the buffet

Recent Examples on the Web

However, whether that is beneficial for the greater good is debatable. —Zak Garner-Purkis, Forbes, 30 Nov. 2024

The ethics of moving to Canada for those unhappy with incoming U.S. political leadership is debatable, of course. —Lila MacLellan, Fortune, 6 Nov. 2024

But so far only one institution, Houston Christian University, has taken the formal–if legally debatable– next step in attempting to halt the case’s impending resolution. —Daniel Libit, Sportico.com, 18 July 2024

Now, as for whether or not Donald Trump is not at all Taylor Swift fan, that's actually debatable. —Elizabeth Logan, Glamour, 11 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1536, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

debatable

adjective

de·​bat·​able di-ˈbāt-ə-bəl 

: open to question or dispute

a debatable decision

debatably

-blē 

adverb