dubious

adjective

du·​bi·​ous ˈdü-bē-əs How to pronounce dubious (audio)
 also  dyü-
1
: unsettled in opinion : doubtful
I was dubious about the plan.
2
: giving rise to uncertainty: such as
a
: of doubtful promise or outcome
a dubious plan
b
: questionable or suspect as to true nature or quality
the practice is of dubious legality
dubiously adverb
dubiousness noun

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There's No Uncertainty Around the Definition of Dubious

Pop music pop quiz—which musical act had a hit with the song “Ooby Dooby”: 1950s rock-and-roll legend Roy Orbison or 1970s soft rock groovers the Doobie Brothers? Perhaps you’re dubious that the Doobies would do “Ooby Dooby.” Too obvious. On the other hand, Orbison may represent the more dubious choice if you’re an “Ooby Dooby” newbie. Regardless of which way you waffle, however, we think you’ll appreciate dubious as a word that does double duty, meaning both “uncertain or doubtful” (as in “dubious that the Doobies would do…”) and “giving rise to uncertainty as to outcome, quality, or nature” (as in “dubious choice”). And we know without a doubt that dubious comes from the Latin verb dubare, meaning “to hesitate in choice of opinions or courses,” which in turn shares roots with the Latin word duo, meaning “two.” Oh, and if you’re still of two minds about our music quiz, the answer is Orbison.

Choose the Right Synonym for dubious

doubtful, dubious, problematic, questionable mean not affording assurance of the worth, soundness, or certainty of something.

doubtful implies little more than a lack of conviction or certainty.

doubtful about whether I said the right thing

dubious stresses suspicion, mistrust, or hesitation.

dubious about the practicality of the scheme

problematic applies especially to things whose existence, meaning, fulfillment, or realization is highly uncertain.

whether the project will ever be finished is problematic

questionable may imply no more than the existence of doubt but usually suggests that the suspicions are well-grounded.

a man of questionable honesty

Examples of dubious in a Sentence

The recent rumbles and ruptures in the financial markets are finally making people reassess the dubious systems of credit that have arisen in the past few years. William Safire, New York Times Magazine, 19 Aug. 2007
Thus, the translation of the Latin word biographus as "a biography," and the limitation of "biographies" to written, printed histories of men, was perhaps inevitable. Poor Dryden was given the dubious honor of being the first to use the generic term—despite the fact that his phrase had been taken out of the context of biographical compilers, in a discussion of Plutarch. Nigel Hamilton, Biography, 2007
That indeed is the crux of the matter. Today especially, when community-oriented policing is being introduced everywhere, it seems not only ethically dubious but self-defeating to engage in practices that at their best undermine trust and cooperation between citizens and law-enforcement officials and at their worst foster cynicism toward our legal system. Edwin Dobb, Harper's, May 2002
To avoid fees, the new "relationship" minimum for checking accounts jumped from $2000 to as much as $6000. And what would customers get in exchange? The ability to take advantage of such a dubious new benefit as a consolidated monthly statement. Consumer Reports, March 1996
He made the highly dubious claim that Elvis is still alive and living in Hawaii. a man of dubious character
Recent Examples on the Web Plenty of movies and TV through the years have fallen into that dubious basket, and Libii might have been better served by weaving in clips (assuming the budget would have allowed for that) instead of satirically replicating them, which is the approach employed here. Brian Lowry, CNN, 15 Mar. 2024 The trailer offers glimpses of the dubious softball skills in that goofy cast, many members of which play addicts in recovery — and are such in real life. Jack Smart, Peoplemag, 13 Mar. 2024 Then there are the legions of food blogs and influencers, some of whom offer high-quality recipes and others whose content is dubious at best. Drew Harwell, Washington Post, 7 Mar. 2024 The authenticity of those sneakers is dubious, however − the official Trump sneakers website says the shoes won’t be shipped until July 2024. Sudiksha Kochi, USA TODAY, 1 Mar. 2024 Most of these holdings—including bones, teeth, tissues and about 250 brains—were acquired in the 19th and early 20th centuries under dubious circumstances. Ellen Wexler, Smithsonian Magazine, 22 Feb. 2024 In fact, even before Smirnov was charged, responsible newsrooms viewed the bribery allegations as dubious at best. Oliver Darcy, CNN, 29 Feb. 2024 Elizabeth, however, is more focused in burnishing the reputation of her cryogenically frozen lover, Bobby (played by RZA), an artist of dubious skill who made paintings of eggs. Carolina A. Miranda, Los Angeles Times, 28 Feb. 2024 Such levies could be justified with dubious (but plausible) arguments about moral betterment and public health. Joseph Thorndike, Forbes, 26 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'dubious.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Latin dubius, from dubare to vacillate; akin to Latin duo two — more at two

First Known Use

1548, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Time Traveler
The first known use of dubious was in 1548

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Dictionary Entries Near dubious

Cite this Entry

“Dubious.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dubious. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

dubious

adjective
du·​bi·​ous ˈd(y)ü-bē-əs How to pronounce dubious (audio)
1
: causing doubt : uncertain
a dubious honor
2
: feeling doubt : undecided
dubious about our chances in the race
3
: of uncertain outcome
a dubious struggle
4
: questionable in value, quality, or origin
won by dubious means
dubiously adverb
dubiousness noun

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