1
as in questionable
open to question or dispute
it's always debatable which college football team is really number one, since there's more than one ranking system
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in disputable
giving good reason for being doubted, questioned, or challenged
the debatable wisdom of going back for another helping from the buffet
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of debatable
Advertisement Ed Gein isn’t wrong to note that great art has arisen from engagement with true crime (though Chain Saw’s inclusion in that canon is debatable).
—
Judy Berman, Time, 6 Oct. 2025
While Stroud's drop in athleticism is debatable, the young signal-caller’s production has dipped since his standout rookie season.
—Chantz Martin, FOXNews.com, 4 Oct. 2025
What’s more debatable is whether the idea is probable, or even plausible.
—Alex Hutchinson, Outside, 15 Sep. 2025
What's next for mortgages, though, is debatable.
—Susan Tompor, Freep.com, 15 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for debatable
Judy Berman, Time, 6 Oct. 2025
While Stroud's drop in athleticism is debatable, the young signal-caller’s production has dipped since his standout rookie season.
—Chantz Martin, FOXNews.com, 4 Oct. 2025
What’s more debatable is whether the idea is probable, or even plausible.
—Alex Hutchinson, Outside, 15 Sep. 2025
What's next for mortgages, though, is debatable.
—Susan Tompor, Freep.com, 15 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for debatable
Recent Examples of Synonyms for debatable
Adjective
-
Two other names on the injury report for Buffalo are tight end Dalton Kincaid (oblique, questionable) and wide receiver/kick returner Curtis Samuel (neck/ribs, questionable).—
Tyler Everett,
MSNBC Newsweek,
13 Oct. 2025
-
Aaron Brewer will suit up Sunday after initially being ruled questionable with a pectoral injury.—
Miami Herald,
Miami Herald,
13 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
That time, a very disputable foul denied him.—
Matt Woosnam,
New York Times,
18 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
While that’s arguable, what is not is that productivity in the U.K. has been remarkably flat for roughly 20 years.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
22 Sep. 2025
-
Whether a cell in 1598 played a part in conceiving of the scrawny, hobbled hidalgo with a cardboard visor and a bent lance is arguable, but Cervantes’ far more traumatic enslavement from 1571 until 1576 must have formed his intimate comprehension of the difference between freedom and servitude.—
Ed Simon
September 22,
Literary Hub,
22 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Sometimes, Wyeth’s work was described as bourgeois, betraying a desire for black ease and affluence, trading in a corrosive and politically dubious desire to see black people rich or at the very least in luxurious settings.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
14 Oct. 2025
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That decision seems dubious, because Trader made one of the most damaging defensive plays of the game when he was juked out by Ladd McConkey on a play in which the Chargers receiver caught a 3-yard pass and ran another 40 to set up the game-winning field goal.—
Barry Jackson,
Miami Herald,
13 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
This lack of representation is problematic for people of different ancestries because genetic risk factors differ across populations.—
Rachel Nuwer,
Scientific American,
14 Oct. 2025
-
As good as Oakley is, Trigg is on another tier and could prove problematic in the middle of the field.—
Steven Johnson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
14 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
The lesser among them, the timorous, the doubtful, and the wavering, stood back, watching, waiting for some greater sign, savoring their doubts.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
14 Oct. 2025
-
The Rams will likely be without starting tight end Tyler Higbee (doubtful, hip) and right tackle Rob Havenstein (doubtful, ankle).—
Tyler Everett,
MSNBC Newsweek,
2 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
The duo must sneak around the industrial plant and analyze three packages full of teddy bears filled with a suspicious substance.—
Jordan Moreau,
Variety,
14 Oct. 2025
-
Officers from the fire department in Barra da Tijuca were called to the scene after neighbors noticed a suspicious smell coming from the property.—
Becca Longmire,
PEOPLE,
14 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Debatable.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/debatable. Accessed 21 Oct. 2025.
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