English

Noun

debate ‎(countable and uncountable, plural debates)

1. (obsolete) Strife, discord.
2. An 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.‎

3. An informal and spirited but generally civil discussion of opposing views.

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

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

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

     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.

4. (uncountable) Discussion of opposing views.

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

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

     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.

5. (Frequently in French form débat) A 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.

Translations

Verb

debate ‎(third-person singular simple present debates, present participle debating, simple past and past participle debated)

1. (transitive, intransitive) To participate in a debate; to dispute, argue, especially in a public arena. [from 14th c.]
   • Shakespeare

     a wise council […] that did debate this business

   • Bible, Proverbs xxv. 9

     Debate thy cause with thy neighbour himself.

   • Tatler

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

2. (obsolete, intransitive) To fight. [14th-17th c.]
   • 1590, Edmund Spenser, The Faerie Queene, II.viii:

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

3. (obsolete, transitive) To engage in combat for; to strive for.
   • Prescott

     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.

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

Derived terms

• debater

Related terms

• debatable
• debation

Translations

Anagrams

• beated, betaed

Albanian

Noun

debate m pl

1. plural of debat

Portuguese

Noun

debate m (plural debates)

1. debate

Quotations

For usage examples of this term, see Citations:debate.

Verb

debate

1. third-person singular present indicative of debater
2. second-person singular imperative of debater

Quotations

For usage examples of this term, see Citations:debate.

Spanish

Noun

debate m ‎(plural debates)

1. debate, discussion

Related terms

• debatir

Verb

debate

1. Informal second-person singular (tú) affirmative imperative form of debatir.
2. Formal second-person singular (usted) present indicative form of debatir.
3. Third-person singular (él, ella, also used with usted^?) present indicative form of debatir.