debatable

adjective

de·​bat·​able di-ˈbā-tə-bəl How to pronounce debatable (audio)
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 adverb

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 Whether the new mixture of talent and tone provides enough rationale for Netflix to invest its relatively new money is debatable for a show whose appeal, beyond the general atmosphere, mostly boils down to smoke and mirrors. Brian Lowry, CNN, 7 Mar. 2024 Gascón’s overall effect on misdemeanor crime in the county is debatable. James Queally, Los Angeles Times, 2 Mar. 2024 Whether or not social media has destroyed the ability to concentrate is still debatable, but as Teesa’s saga proves, nothing holds our attention quite like a good bit of gossip. Dani Di Placido, Forbes, 22 Feb. 2024 In other campaign news … Not debatable: ABC canceled its New Hampshire primary debate originally scheduled for Thursday after DeSantis was the only candidate to commit to participating. Bridget Bowman, NBC News, 17 Jan. 2024 The website is a precious resource for those who want to understand what topics are publicly debatable in China and what Chinese writers are saying about them. David Ownby, Foreign Affairs, 12 Dec. 2023 While the latter statement is heavily debatable, the former isn’t. Daniel Golson, The Verge, 27 Oct. 2023 What’s less debatable is that Asia must expect the unexpected in 2024. William Pesek, Forbes, 16 Feb. 2024 Marley’s music has permeated global culture, though whether his message has been preserved is debatable. Katie Walsh, Los Angeles Times, 14 Feb. 2024

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

Word History

First Known Use

1536, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of debatable was in 1536

Dictionary Entries Near debatable

Cite this Entry

“Debatable.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/debatable. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

debatable

adjective
de·​bat·​able di-ˈbāt-ə-bəl How to pronounce debatable (audio)
: open to question or dispute
a debatable decision
debatably adverb

More from Merriam-Webster on debatable

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