questionable

questionable
I
(New American Roget's College Thesaurus)
adj. doubtful, uncertain, debatable, fishy (inf.). See doubt, improbity.
II
(Roget's IV) modif.
1. [Justifying doubt]
Syn. doubtful, dubious, uncertain, undefined, equivocal, disputable, arguable, obscure, inconclusive, controversial, vague, unsettled, open to doubt, indeterminate, debatable, moot, unconfirmed, problematic, cryptic, occult, apocryphal, hypothetical, mysterious, oracular, enigmatic, ambiguous, indefinite, contingent, provisional, paradoxical, under advisement, under examination, open to question, up for discussion, in question, to be voted on, to be decided, hard to believe, incredible, iffy*; see also uncertain 2 .
Ant. definite*, undoubted, certain.
2. [Having a poor appearance or reputation]
Syn. dubious, suspicious, suspect, disreputable, of doubtful character, irregular, notorious, of ill repute, unsatisfactory, unsound, thought ill of, under a cloud, unesteemed, ill-favored, unpopular, disagreeable, evil-looking, illegitimate, discreditable, disrespectable, unreliable, untrustworthy, dishonest, fly-by-night, shady*, fishy*, queer*; see also suspicious 2 .
Ant. honored*, esteemed, reputable.
See Synonym Study at doubtful .
III
(Roget's 3 Superthesaurus) a.
1. doubtful debatable, in question, controversial, unsettled, indeterminate, controvertible, ambiguous, moot, unsure.
2. suspect fishy, shady, suspicious.
ANT.: 1. certain, settled. 2. believable, legitimate, unimpeachable
IV
(Roget's Thesaurus II) adjective 1. In doubt or dispute: arguable, contested, debatable, disputable, doubtful, exceptionable, moot, mootable, problematic, problematical, uncertain. See CERTAIN. 2. Not affording certainty: ambiguous, borderline, chancy, clouded, doubtful, dubious, dubitable, equivocal, inconclusive, indecisive, indeterminate, problematic, problematical, uncertain, unclear, unsure. Informal: iffy. Idioms: at issue, in doubt, in question. See CERTAIN, CLEAR. 3. Not likely: doubtful, improbable, unapt, unlikely. See LIKELY. 4. Of dubious character: doubtful, equivocal, shady, suspect, suspicious, uncertain. Informal: fishy. See HONEST.

English dictionary for students. 2013.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • questionable — ques‧tion‧a‧ble [ˈkwestʆnəbl] adjective 1. not definitely correct or true: • Looking back, we did make some questionable decisions. 2. behaviour or actions that are questionable seem likely to be dishonest or wrong: • business deals of a rather …   Financial and business terms

  • Questionable — Ques tion*a*ble, a. 1. Admitting of being questioned; inviting, or seeming to invite, inquiry. [R.] [1913 Webster] Thou com st in such a questionable shape That I will speak to thee. Shak. [1913 Webster] 2. Liable to question; subject to be… …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

  • questionable — [kwes′chən ə bəl, kwes′tyənə bəl] adj. 1. that can or should be questioned or doubted; open to doubt [a questionable story] 2. suspected with good reason of being immoral, dishonest, unsound, etc. 3. not definitely as specified; uncertain [of… …   English World dictionary

  • questionable — I (dubious) adjective ambiguous, arguable, at issue, contestable, controversial, controvertible, debatable, disputable, doubtable, doubtful, dubious, dubitable, enigmatical, equivocal, experimental, fallible, hard to believe, hardly possible,… …   Law dictionary

  • questionable — (adj.) c.1600, open to dispute, doubtful, from QUESTION (Cf. question) + ABLE (Cf. able). Depreciatory sense of dubious in character is attested from 1806. Related: Questionably …   Etymology dictionary

  • questionable — *doubtful, dubious, problematic Analogous words: uncertain, suspicious (see corresponding nouns at UNCERTAINTY): *obscure, vague, equivocal Antonyms: authoritative: unquestioned …   New Dictionary of Synonyms

  • questionable — [adj] doubtful, uncertain ambiguous, apocryphal, arguable, contingent, controversial, controvertible, cryptic, debatable, disputable, dubious, dubitable, enigmatic, equivocal, fishy*, hard to believe, hypothetical, iffy*, indecisive, indefinite,… …   New thesaurus

  • questionable — ► ADJECTIVE 1) open to doubt. 2) of suspect morality, honesty, etc. DERIVATIVES questionably adverb …   English terms dictionary

  • questionable — ques|tion|a|ble [ˈkwestʃənəbəl] adj 1.) not likely to be true or correct ▪ The statistics are highly questionable . it is questionable whether ▪ It is questionable whether the taxpayer receives value for money. 2.) not likely to be good, honest,… …   Dictionary of contemporary English

  • questionable — questionableness, questionability, n. questionably, adv. /kwes cheuh neuh beuhl/, adj. 1. of doubtful propriety, honesty, morality, respectability, etc.: questionable activities; in questionable taste. 2. open to question or dispute; doubtful or… …   Universalium

  • questionable — ques|tion|a|ble [ kwestʃənəbl ] adjective * 1. ) possibly not true, accurate, or complete: The results of the test seem highly questionable. 2. ) probably not good, honest, or worth admiring: questionable behavior/conduct/practices questionable… …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

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