Link Centre Dictionary

debate

de·bate

UK/dɪˈbeɪt/ US/dɪˈbeɪt/ common
noun (2) verb (4)

noun

1.

a discussion in which reasons are advanced for and against some proposition or proposal

  • “the argument over foreign aid goes on and on”
Synonyms
2.

verb

1.

argue with one another

  • “We debated the question of abortion”
  • “John debated Mary”
2.

think about carefully; weigh

  • “They considered the possibility of a strike”
  • “Turn the proposal over in your mind”
Synonyms
3.

discuss the pros and cons of an issue

Synonyms
4.

Origin

From Middle English debaten, from Old French debatre (“to fight, contend, debate, also literally to beat down”), from Romanic desbattere, from Latin dis- (“apart, in different directions”) + battuō (“to beat, to fence”).

Phrases

  • balloon debate
  • debate bro
  • mass debate

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Entails

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.