debate

present singular third person debates · participle present debating · participle past debated · past debated

1. ambitransitivereciprocalTo participate in a debate; to dispute, argue, especially in a public arena.First known use 14th c.

   "Debate me, coward!" snarled the completely normal intellectual.

   4 more examples

   a wise council […] that did debate this business

   1613 (date written), William Shakespeare, [John Fletcher], “The Famous History of the Life of King Henry the Eight”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act II, scene iv]

   Debate thy cause with thy neighbour himself.

   1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Proverbs 25:9

   He presents that great soul debating upon the subject of life and death with his intimate friends.

   1709 August 21 (Gregorian calendar), Isaac Bickerstaff [et al., pseudonyms; Richard Steele et al.], “Wednesday, August 11, 1709”, in The Tatler, number 53; republished in [Richard Steele], editor, The Tatler, […], London stereotype edition, volume I, London: I. Walker and Co.; […], 1822, →OCLC

   When the legislation was debated by the House of Commons, Labour Deputy Leader Angela Rayner said it was "riddled with holes", while former Conservative Commons Leader Jacob Rees-Mogg said it was "badly written".

   2024 March 20, Conrad Landin, “"Farcical" Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act isn't working”, in RAIL, number 1005, page 25

   Synonyms: contend, canvass

2. intransitiveobsoletereciprocalTo fight.First known use 14th–17th c.

   […] wasteful Time debateth with Decay, To change your day of youth to sullied night

   1609, William Shakespeare, Sonnet 15

   1 more example

   Well knew they both his person, sith of late / With him in bloudie armes they rashly did debate.

   1590, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, II.viii

3. obsoletetransitiveTo engage in combat for; to strive for.

   Volunteers […] thronged to serve under his banner, and the cause of religion was debated with the same ardour in Spain as on the plains of Palestine.

   1838, William H[ickling] Prescott, History of the Reign of Ferdinand and Isabella, the Catholic. […], volume (please specify |volume=I to III), Boston, Mass.: American Stationers’ Company; John B. Russell, →OCLC

4. transitiveTo consider (to oneself), to think over, to attempt to decide

   He was debating where he'd spend his holiday.

plural debates

1. countableuncountableAn argument, or discussion, usually in an ordered or formal setting, often with more than two people, generally ending with a vote or other decision.

   After a four-hour debate, the committee voted to table the motion.

2. countableuncountableAn informal and spirited but generally civil discussion of opposing views.

   The debate over the age of the universe is thousands of years old.

   2 more examples

   There was a bit of a debate over who should pay for the damaged fence.

   The use of algorithms in policing is one example of their increasing influence on our lives. And, as their ubiquity spreads, so too does the debate around whether we should allow ourselves to become so reliant on them – and who, if anyone, is policing their use.

   2013 July 26, Leo Hickman, “How algorithms rule the world”, in The Guardian Weekly, volume 189, number 7, page 26

3. uncountableDiscussion of opposing views.

   There has been considerable debate concerning exactly how to format these articles.

   1 more example

   Oxygen levels on Earth skyrocketed 2.4 billion years ago, when cyanobacteria evolved photosynthesis:[…]. The evolutionary precursor of photosynthesis is still under debate, and a new study sheds light. The critical component of the photosynthetic system is the “water-oxidizing complex”, made up of manganese atoms and a calcium atom.

   2013 September-October, Katie L. Burke, “In the News”, in American Scientist

4. countableuncountableA type of literary composition, taking the form of a discussion or disputation, commonly found in the vernacular medieval poetry of many European countries, as well as in medieval Latin.
5. countableobsoleteuncountableStrife, discord.