Skip to main content
controversially

controversially

3 6.1
In a way that makes people disagree strongly
  • adverb
  • /ˌkɒntrəˈvɜːrʃəli/
translation icon : controversialmente
  • Perhaps more controversially, Schilling says her analysis also indicates that further investment in fossil fuel technologies looks to be money wasted.
  • more controversially
  • less controversially
  • most controversially

I asked this as you have somehow controversially been a proponent of peace.

Autoplay Next

Examples

  • The decline in cot death since the back-to-sleep campaign has controversially highlighted the fact that within a subgroup of sudden infant death cases, there is a link with child abuse.

    Academic text (2011)
  • Many people controversially disagree with his opinion on climate change.

  • And he he quite, quite controversially at the time, taught that happiness was something to be worked for.

  • And finally, I suppose mostly, most controversially, David Bell's book The first Total War, which I'll discuss some of the themes in a while.

  • And, most controversially, he'll keep the rights to a wind farm project that the people of Lanai hate.

    Blog text (7)
  • I asked this as you have somehow controversially been a proponent of peace.

  • Most controversially, Mary argued that wives should govern sexual relations in marriage.

    Academic text (2018)
  • On the other hand, a case could be made for offering greater tolerance to a professor who speaks controversially in his or her field of expertise.

    Academic text (2006)
  • Most controversially, the United States signed the agreement without an explicit guarantee that force would not be used to retake Taiwan.

    Academic text (2002)
  • Second, and more controversially, the results of this analysis contradict the traditional notion that capitalism and democracy are mutually reinforcing.

    Academic text (1997)

Synonyms

contentiously
vscontroversially
1 7.4

In a way that causes strong disagreement

is used when disagreement is public or likely to reach many people
divisively
vscontroversially
1 6.2

Causing disagreement or anger between people and groups

is about public disagreement but not focused on group division
debatably
vscontroversially
1 6.1

In a way people can disagree about it

is stronger, implying public disagreement rather than mere arguability
polemically
vscontroversially
  • Formal
8.7

In a strongly critical way that tries to cause an argument

is used to describe public disagreement without necessarily hostile attack

Antonyms

In a way that does not cause disagreement

How Controversial

controversially
3 6.1
debatably
1 6.1
arguably
135 4.4

Surface Forms

controversially positive

Morphology

controversially = controversial (transparent) = controversy + al + ly

Formed by adding the productive adverbial suffix '-ly' to the adjective 'controversial', yielding the straightforward meaning 'in a controversial way'.

Etymology

Controversially comes from the Latin parts contra 'against' and vertere 'to turn', the same root you see in versus and reverse. So, if something is done controversially, it makes people 'turn against' it and causes public disagreement.