open question

British  

noun

1. a matter which is undecided

2. a question that cannot be answered with a yes or no but requires a developed answer

---

open question Idioms  

1. An unresolved issue, one that has not been finally determined. For example, Whether the town should pave all the unpaved roads remains an open question. In the mid-1800s this term acquired a specific meaning in the British Parliament, that is, “an issue on which members may vote independently, without respect to their party affiliation.”

---

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

open question

It is an open question how Yale’s medical school can survive in its present form without income provided by federally supported research.

From Slate ● Jul. 30, 2026

Whether that strategy would pay off is still an open question.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 25, 2026

They are increasingly unified in the belief that Burnham's destination of Downing Street is assured, and that the only open question is the precise path for getting there.

From BBC ● Jun. 19, 2026

That left the committee’s direction an open question at a moment when its members are split down the middle.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 18, 2026

Nevertheless, it remains an open question how wide and lasting the effects of idiosyncratic individuals on history really are.

From "Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies" by Jared M. Diamond