controversial

Latin controversia (“controversy”) + -al; see controversy.

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˌkɒn.tɹəˈvɜː.ʃəl/, /ˌkɒn.tɹəˈvɜː.sjəl/

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• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˌkɑn.tɹəˈvɝ.ʃəl/, /ˌkɑn.tɹəˈvɝ.sjəl/
• Hyphenation: con‧tro‧ver‧sial

controversial (comparative more controversial, superlative most controversial)

1. Arousing controversy—a debate or discussion of opposing opinions.
   • 1849–1861, Thomas Babington Macaulay, The History of England from the Accession of James the Second, volume (please specify |volume=I to V), London: Longman, Brown, Green, and Longmans, OCLC 1069526323:

     Whole libraries of controversial books.

   • 2021 September 16, Maher, Bill, Bill Maher on Getting Anger from Both Sides, Our Divided Country & Norm Macdonald’s Passing‎, Jimmy Kimmel Live!, 7:52 from the start:

     MAHER: Well, whatever. I just said we shouldn't have two national anthems. We're one country. It's not a good idea. We've seen what happens in other countries where you have, you know- when you separate things out. That's never where America was. That's never where liberalism was. It was about being a colorblind society. So, a new national anthem? Fine. I'll go for that. But not two. Because that leads down a road we don't wanna go. Applause.
     KIMMEL: Do you feel like...
     MAHER: Thank you.
     KIMMEL: Hey there's a lot of fear in the air and generally, you don't want to be caught applauding something that might be controversial.
     MAHER: I couldn't give a fuck.
     KIMMEL: I wasn't talking about you.

• controversial in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913
• controversial in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911

• IPA^(key): /kontɾobeɾˈsjal/ [kõn̪.t̪ɾo.β̞eɾˈsjal]
• Rhymes: -al
• Syllabification: con‧tro‧ver‧sial

controversial (plural controversiales)

1. (Latin America) controversial

   Synonym: controvertido

   • 2015 December, “"Estamos en el comienzo de un reexamen del capitalismo"”, in El Pais (Uruguay)‎:

     Esto comienza con los acuerdos de (protección de) inversión que han sido controversiales por cerca de veinte años.

     (please add an English translation of this quote)

• controversialmente

• controversia

• “controversial”, in Diccionario de la lengua española, Vigésima tercera edición, Real Academia Española, 2014