What does debatable mean?
Word: Debatable
Part of Speech: Adjective
Meaning: Debatable means open to question, so that people can reasonably hold different views about it.
Synonyms: questionable
Antonyms: undeniable
How do you spell debatable?
Syllables: de - bat - a - ble
Tricky part: The t stays single. Words like better and battle tempt pupils into tt.
Watch out for: debattable, debbatable
Memory tip: Debate has one t, and adding a suffix does not give it a partner.
Debatable in a sentence
Example 1: Whether mangoes taste better than lychees is debatable.
Example 2: The referee's decision was debatable, but the team accepted it.
Example 3: It is debatable whether the new timetable will save any time.
Fun Fact
English has an older way of calling something debatable: a moot point. A moot was a meeting in Anglo-Saxon England where people came together to settle local matters.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Cookie
Insert the correct pair of letters to form a word:
debat_bl_
a) a, e
b) a, a
c) e, e
d) i, e
Show answer
a) a, e. A comes before the ble, as in readable, and a silent e closes the word.
Mingle-Mangle
Rearrange the jumbled letters in the sentence to form the right word:
The umpires are checking the video, as the catch on the boundary was dbaleteab.
a) debatable
b) dependable
c) detachable
d) desirable
Show answer
a) debatable. The letters include two b's, and no other option has more than one.
Word Connection
Choose the antonym of the word debatable as used in the sentence:
Whether the old map was drawn by a Portuguese sailor is debatable.
a) certain
b) doubtful
c) unsettled
d) disputed
Show answer
a) certain. If nobody had any doubt about the map, the matter would be this.
Spell-o-Spell
Only one of these words is spelt correctly. Choose the meaning of that word.
1. hypothetecal 2. controvercial 3. debatable 4. ambigous
a) not yet settled, and likely to be argued over
b) having more than one possible meaning
c) based on an imagined situation
d) causing strong public disagreement
Show answer
a) not yet settled, and likely to be argued over. Ambiguous has a u after the g, controversial an s before the ial, and hypothetical an i after the t.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which of these statements is debatable?
a) Cricket is played with a bat and ball.
b) Cricket is the best sport in the world.
c) A cricket pitch has two sets of stumps.
d) A cricket team has eleven players.
Show answer
b) Cricket is the best sport in the world.
2. If a historian calls a date debatable, what does she mean?
a) experts do not agree on it
b) it is printed in every book
c) it has been proved wrong
d) it falls in the distant past
Show answer
a) experts do not agree on it
