Contestable

Part of speech: adjective

Definitions

1. Subject to dispute, challenge, or debate; capable of being questioned or argued against
2. Subject to being challenged, argued against, or disputed in various aspects, allowing for differing interpretations and opinions
3. Open to disagreement, dispute, or differing viewpoints

Etymology: "Contestable" is built from "contest" plus the suffix "-able," which means "capable of being." So it is literally "capable of being contested." The suffix has a longer history than the base word suggests: the ending traces back through Latin "-abilis" and Old French "-able" to a Proto-Indo-European root, and the Latin form itself grew out of earlier Italic ancestors. English picked up the ending as a productive tool, attaching it to many verbs, so it could be used to build new adjectives on the spot. The base "contest" came into English from Old French, which took it from Latin "contestari," meaning to call witnesses to testify, literally "to call to witness together." That original legal sense is still visible in the word's core. A thing that is contestable is one that could be brought before a court, or, more loosely, one that someone could reasonably argue against.

Synonyms: disputable, debatable

Antonyms: indisputable, certain