debate
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English[edit]
Etymology[edit]
From Old French debatre (“to fight, contend, debate, also literally to beat down”), from Romanic desbattere, from Latin dis- (“apart, in different directions”) + battuere (“to beat, to fence”).
Pronunciation[edit]
Noun[edit]
debate (countable and uncountable, plural debates)
- An argument, or discussion, usually in an ordered or formal setting, often with more than two people, generally ending with a vote or other decision.
- After a four-hour debate, the committee voted to table the motion.
- An informal and spirited but generally civil discussion of opposing views.
- The debate over the age of the universe is thousands of years old.
- There was a bit of a debate over who should pay for the damaged fence.
- 2013 July 26, Leo Hickman, “How algorithms rule the world”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 7, page 26:
- The use of algorithms in policing is one example of their increasing influence on our lives. And, as their ubiquity spreads, so too does the debate around whether we should allow ourselves to become so reliant on them – and who, if anyone, is policing their use.
- (uncountable) Discussion of opposing views.
- There has been considerable debate concerning exactly how to format these articles.
- 2013 September-October, Katie L. Burke, “In the News”, in American Scientist:
- Oxygen levels on Earth skyrocketed 2.4 billion years ago, when cyanobacteria evolved photosynthesis: […] . The evolutionary precursor of photosynthesis is still under debate, and a new study sheds light. The critical component of the photosynthetic system is the “water-oxidizing complex”, made up of manganese atoms and a calcium atom.
- (frequently in the French form débat) A type of literary composition, taking the form of a discussion or disputation, commonly found in the vernacular medieval poetry of many European countries, as well as in medieval Latin.
- (obsolete) Strife, discord.
Translations[edit]
argument, or discussion, usually in an ordered or formal setting
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informal and spirited but generally civil discussion of opposing views
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discussion of opposing views
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type of literary composition
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- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.
Translations to be checked
Verb[edit]
debate (third-person singular simple present debates, present participle debating, simple past and past participle debated)
- (transitive, intransitive) To participate in a debate; to dispute, argue, especially in a public arena. [from 14th c.]
- 1613, William Shakespeare; [John Fletcher], “The Famous History of the Life of King Henry the Eight”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies: Published According to the True Originall Copies (First Folio), London: Printed by Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358, [Act II, scene iv]:
- a wise council […] that did debate this business
- 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), imprinted at London: By Robert Barker, […], OCLC 964384981, Proverbs 25:9:
- Debate thy cause with thy neighbour himself.
- (Can we date this quote by Tatler and provide title, author's full name, and other details?)
- He presents that great soul debating upon the subject of life and death with his intimate friends.
- "Debate me, coward!" snarled the completely normal intellectual.
- (obsolete, intransitive) To fight. [14th-17th c.]
- 1590, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, II.viii:
- Well knew they both his person, sith of late / With him in bloudie armes they rashly did debate.
- 1609, William Shakespeare, Sonnet 15:
- ... wasteful Time debateth with Decay,
- To change your day of youth to sullied night
- 1590, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, II.viii:
- (obsolete, transitive) To engage in combat for; to strive for.
- (Can we date this quote by Prescott and provide title, author's full name, and other details?)
- Volunteers […] thronged to serve under his banner, and the cause of religion was debated with the same ardour in Spain as on the plains of Palestine.
- (Can we date this quote by Prescott and provide title, author's full name, and other details?)
- (transitive) To consider (to oneself), to think over, to attempt to decide
- He was debating where he'd spend his holiday.
Derived terms[edit]
Related terms[edit]
Translations[edit]
participate in a debate
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Further reading[edit]
- debate in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
- debate in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911
Anagrams[edit]
Albanian[edit]
Noun[edit]
debate m pl
Portuguese[edit]
Pronunciation[edit]
Noun[edit]
debate m (plural debates)
Quotations[edit]
For quotations of use of this term, see Citations:debate.
Verb[edit]
debate
Quotations[edit]
For quotations of use of this term, see Citations:debate.
Spanish[edit]
Noun[edit]
debate m (plural debates)
Related terms[edit]
Verb[edit]
debate
Categories:
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- en:Talking
- Albanian non-lemma forms
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- Portuguese terms with IPA pronunciation
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- Spanish forms of verbs ending in -ir
