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

But that’s largely a claim based on a questionable reading of statistics. —Sasha Rogelberg, Fortune, 3 June 2024

The companion album doesn’t feel essential in the same way, at least not the original 1984 LP, for which the questionable choice was made to trim the set down to nine songs. —Al Shipley, SPIN, 26 May 2024

Another found that though a group of autistic participants found value in interacting with a chatbot for social communication advice, that chatbot was also dispensing questionable advice. —Casey Fiesler, Discover Magazine, 24 May 2024

In February, a New York jury found the NRA liable in a civil fraud case over the organization's questionable spending; Wayne LaPierre, the organization's long-time leader, stepped down. —David Jackson, USA TODAY, 19 May 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