dubious

play

adjective du·bi·ous \ˈdü-bē-əs also dyü-\

Definition of dubious

1 : giving rise to uncertainty: such asa : of doubtful promise or outcome a dubious planb : questionable or suspect as to true nature or quality the practice is of dubious legality
2 : unsettled in opinion : doubtful I was dubious about the plan.

dubiously

adverb

dubiousness

noun

See dubious defined for English-language learners

See dubious defined for kids

dubious was our Word of the Day on 07/25/2015. Hear the podcast!

Examples of dubious in a Sentence

The recent rumbles and ruptures in the financial markets are finally making people reassess the dubious systems of credit that have arisen in the past few years. —William Safire, New York Times Magazine, 19 Aug. 2007
Thus, the translation of the Latin word biographus as “a biography,” and the limitation of “biographies” to written, printed histories of men, was perhaps inevitable. Poor Dryden was given the dubious honor of being the first to use the generic term—despite the fact that his phrase had been taken out of the context of biographical compilers, in a discussion of Plutarch. —Nigel Hamilton, Biography, 2007
That indeed is the crux of the matter. Today especially, when community-oriented policing is being introduced everywhere, it seems not only ethically dubious but self-defeating to engage in practices that at their best undermine trust and cooperation between citizens and law-enforcement officials and at their worst foster cynicism toward our legal system. —Edwin Dobb, Harper's, May 2002
To avoid fees, the new “relationship” minimum for checking accounts jumped from $2000 to as much as $6000. And what would customers get in exchange? The ability to take advantage of such a dubious new benefit as a consolidated monthly statement. —Consumer Reports, March 1996
He made the highly dubious claim that Elvis is still alive and living in Hawaii.
a man of dubious character

Recent Examples of dubious from the Web

Galanter, who represented Simpson during the 2008 trial when he got hit for nine years minimum and 33 years maximum for a dubious but dumb-AF kidnapping charge.

— angela helm, The Root, "$10 Says O.J. Will Be Paroled This Week, But Naysayers Bet Wypipo Ain’t Never Letting This Dude Out," 16 July 2017
Mayor Rahm Emanuel's scheme to create expensive express rail service to O'Hare has always been a dubious proposition.

— john greenfield, Chicago Reader, "Elon Musk’s tunnel vision for Chicago is more like a pipe dream," 11 July 2017
His three-month run as Donald Trump’s presidential campaign chairman ended shortly after The New York Times suggested that Manafort may have received $12.7 million in dubious payments from a pro-Russian Ukrainian political party.

— vanityfair.com, "After the Shocking Donnie Jr. Meeting, Deciphering Paul Manafort’s Smoke Signals the Lynchpin to the Trump-Russia Scandal," 10 July 2017
His three-month run as Donald Trump’s presidential campaign chairman ended shortly after The New York Times suggested that Manafort may have received $12.7 million in dubious payments from a pro-Russian Ukrainian political party.

— chris smith, The Hive, "After the Shocking Donnie Jr. Meeting, Deciphering Paul Manafort’s Smoke Signals the Lynchpin to the Trump-Russia Scandal," 10 July 2017
Much opposition to the Republican effort to repeal and replace Obamacare has coalesced around a dubious talking point that Medicaid expansion is the best way to fix the opioid crisis.

— sam adolphsen, National Review, "Has Medicaid Made the Opioid Epidemic Worse?," 5 July 2017
The almost worst summer Louisiana was in the dubious spot as having the runner-up worse summer in the country.

— AL.com, "3 states with more miserable summers than Alabama," 3 July 2017
After a highly dubious trial, replete with a macabre reenactment, the murder of British tourists Hannah Witheridge and David Miller in September 2014 was blamed on two Burmese nationals, who were then sentenced to death.

— joseph hincks, Time, "The Mother of a Belgian Tourist who Died on a Thai Island Has Accused Local Police of a Cover Up," 30 June 2017
That seed flotilla was suggested by the kitchen, said Cornils, dubious at first.

— carol deptolla, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "The tastes of summer: the cocktail and dish to try in Milwaukee," 29 June 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dubious.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

There's No Uncertainty Around The Definition of dubious

Dubious derives from the Latin verb dubare, meaning "to hesitate in choice of opinions or courses," and it is related to the Latin word for "two": duo. Dubious can be used to indicate uncertainty about the result of an action or the truth of a statement as well as about the uncertainty of a person and his or her character. In either case, it usually implies a feeling of doubt from suspicion, mistrust, or hesitation.

Origin and Etymology of dubious

Latin dubius, from dubare to vacillate; akin to Latin duo two — more at two

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1548

See Words from the same year

Synonym Discussion of dubious

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

DUBIOUS Defined for English Language Learners

dubious

play

adjective

Definition of dubious for English Language Learners

: unsure or uncertain : feeling doubt about something
: causing doubt, uncertainty, or suspicion : likely to be bad or wrong
—used ironically in phrases like dubious honor and dubious distinction to describe something bad or undesirable as if it were an honor or achievement

DUBIOUS Defined for Kids

dubious

play

adjective du·bi·ous \ˈdü-bē-əs, ˈdyü-\

Definition of dubious for Students

1 : causing doubt : uncertain Our plans are dubious at this point.
2 : feeling doubt I was dubious about our chances.
3 : questionable 1 … they all began discussing dragon-slayings historical, dubious, and mythical … — J. R. R. Tolkien, The Hobbit