disputed

[dih-spyoo-tid]

adjective

1. argued or debated about.

   Just when and where the religious practice of the “camp meeting” originated is a disputed question.

2. argued against; called into question.

   He stood by his widely disputed claim that margarine is better for you than butter.

3. quarreled or fought over; contested.

   As negotiations continue, the security situation in the disputed territories is tense and shows signs of escalating.

verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of dispute.

Other Word Forms

• undisputed adjective
• undisputedly adverb
• well-disputed adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of disputed¹

First recorded in 1605–15; dispute ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. ) for the adjective senses; dispute ( def. ) + -ed ¹ ( def. ) for the verb sense

Example Sentences

Amnesty has denounced what it said was a policy of "enforced disappearances" of opponents and foreign nationals since the electoral authorities declared President Nicolas Maduro winner of a disputed vote in July 2024.

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Critics have disputed this characterisation, given the power imbalance at the time they were transferred.

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Relations had already been on the slide after President Macron announced France was recognising Moroccan sovereignty of Western Sahara and backed a plan for limited autonomy for the disputed territory.

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Officials from The Terraces have disputed many of the state investigators’ findings, both substantively and procedurally.

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It disputed the claims by filming a video inside the hospital grounds showing female volunteers tending to patients.

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Related Words

• debatable 
• moot 
• unchallenged 
• undecided 
• undetermined 
• unnoticed 
• unsettled