questionable

adjective

ques·​tion·​able ˈkwes-chə-nə-bəl 

ˈkwesh-,

 in rapid speech  ˈkwesh-nə-

1

obsolete : inviting inquiry

2

obsolete : liable to judicial inquiry or action

3

: affording reason for being doubted, questioned, or challenged : not certain or exact : problematic

milk of questionable purity

a questionable decision

4

: attended by well-grounded suspicions of being immoral, crude, false, or unsound : dubious

questionable motives

questionableness noun

questionably

ˈkwes-chə-nə-blē 

ˈkwesh-

 in rapid speech  ˈkwesh-nə-

adverb

Synonyms

• debatable
• disputable
• dodgy [chiefly British]
• doubtable
• doubtful
• dubious
• dubitable
• equivocal
• fishy
• problematic
• problematical
• queer
• shady
• shaky
• suspect
• suspicious

Choose the Right Synonym for questionable

doubtful, dubious, problematic, questionable mean not affording assurance of the worth, soundness, or certainty of something.

doubtful implies little more than a lack of conviction or certainty.

doubtful about whether I said the right thing

dubious stresses suspicion, mistrust, or hesitation.

dubious about the practicality of the scheme

problematic applies especially to things whose existence, meaning, fulfillment, or realization is highly uncertain.

whether the project will ever be finished is problematic

questionable may imply no more than the existence of doubt but usually suggests that the suspicions are well-grounded.

a man of questionable honesty

Examples of questionable in a Sentence

The truth of the statements was highly questionable.

The water available in the village is of questionable quality.

a man of questionable character

They acquired the money through questionable means.

The company is facing a questionable future.

Recent Examples on the Web

The only other Heat player on the injury report for Game 3 is guard Delon Wright, who is questionable because of personal reasons. —Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 26 Apr. 2024

For decades, the California prison held mostly Black and Brown men alone in tiny cells without windows for years or sometimes decades based on questionable evidence. —Addie Morfoot, Variety, 26 Apr. 2024

Army veteran Steve Watkins won in 2018, but became ensnared in a series of scandals centered on questionable claims about his background. —Jonathan Shorman, Kansas City Star, 25 Apr. 2024

Question anyone using force to push you in a questionable direction. —Eugenia Last, The Mercury News, 25 Apr. 2024

Still, there’s plenty of questionable advice and ideas swirling around. —Karla Walsh, Better Homes & Gardens, 25 Apr. 2024

Researchers faced accusations of conflicts of interest Corruption and questionable conduct rocked local governments across California L.A. Times investigations led to California regulators assembling a team to pursue labor exploitation in the state’s weed industry. —Christian Orozco, Los Angeles Times, 20 Apr. 2024

Will Lowrey, a lawyer in Virginia, said his group, Animal Partisan, often files open records requests related to research involving animal tests, and questionable agricultural practices using animals. —Jennifer Dixon, Detroit Free Press, 15 Apr. 2024

The military benefit of Ukraine’s bombing campaign is also of questionable value, U.S. officials say. —John Hudson, Washington Post, 15 Apr. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

questionable

adjective

ques·​tion·​able ˈkwes-chə-nə-bəl 

ˈkwesh-

1

: open to doubt, question, or challenge : not certain or exact

milk of questionable purity

a questionable decision

2

: believed to be bad, false, or unsound : dubious

questionable motives

questionably

-blē 

adverb