controversial
adjective
con·tro·ver·sial
ˌkän-trə-ˈvər-shəl 
-ˈvər-sē-əl
1
: of, relating to, or arousing controversy
a controversial policy
a controversial film
2
: given to controversy : disputatious
a controversial temperament
The controversial biologist caused a ferment among his colleagues.
controversially
adverb
Examples of controversial in a Sentence
Abortion is a highly controversial subject.
a decision that remains controversial
He is a controversial author.
Recent Examples on the Web
Offensive posts by Gascón from 2020 and 2021 surfaced online last month, many of which included controversial comments about the killing of George Floyd and diversity at the Oscars.
—
Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 24 Feb. 2025
Germany's conservatives are projected to win the national election on Sunday while the controversial far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party records its best-ever results in an election, exit polls showed.
—Mark Joseph, Newsweek, 24 Feb. 2025
Tickets for Fyre Festival 2, a second iteration of the infamous Fyre Festival in 2917, are now available for sale to the public after its controversial founder, Billy McFarland, spent time behind bars for fraud related to the original event.
—Megan Cerullo, CBS News, 24 Feb. 2025
Starbucks’ iced energy drinks and its controversial olive oil coffees have already been removed from menus.
—Nathaniel Meyersohn, CNN, 24 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for controversial
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Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 24 Feb. 2025
Germany's conservatives are projected to win the national election on Sunday while the controversial far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party records its best-ever results in an election, exit polls showed.
—Mark Joseph, Newsweek, 24 Feb. 2025
Tickets for Fyre Festival 2, a second iteration of the infamous Fyre Festival in 2917, are now available for sale to the public after its controversial founder, Billy McFarland, spent time behind bars for fraud related to the original event.
—Megan Cerullo, CBS News, 24 Feb. 2025
Starbucks’ iced energy drinks and its controversial olive oil coffees have already been removed from menus.
—Nathaniel Meyersohn, CNN, 24 Feb. 2025
See All Example Sentences for controversial
Articles Related to controversial
Cite this Entry
“Controversial.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/controversial. Accessed 27 Feb. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
controversial
adjective
con·tro·ver·sial
ˌkän-trə-ˈvər-shəl
-ˈvər-sē-əl
: relating to or causing controversy
a controversial movie
controversially
adverb
-ē
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