controversial
Derived from 'controversy', which comes from Latin 'contraversus' meaning 'turned against'.
ADJ
(1)
[/ˌkɒn.trəˈvɜː.ʃəl/en-GB]
[/ˌkɑːn.trəˈvɪr.ʃəl/en-US]
controversial
literal
/
debatible
/
polémico
/
cuestionable
/
controversialidad
untranslatable
(A noun form that means 'the quality of being controversial'; the concept itself may not be strictly used as an adjective.)
Causing a lot of public discussion, disagreement, or argument, often because it relates to sensitive or strongly debated issues.
- The government's new policy on taxation proved to be highly controversial. — This sentence indicates a new policy that sparked widespread public debate and disagreement.
- His art installation, featuring unusual materials, was deemed controversial by local critics. — This example shows a piece of art that provoked strong opinions and discussion, some negative.
- Choosing such a controversial topic for her thesis made her research challenging. — This illustrates a subject matter that is inherently prone to differing viewpoints and arguments.