dubious
88
6.5
- adjective
- /ˈduːbiəs/
- Many people found the research findings dubious, raising questions about their validity.
- dubious claims
- of dubious character
- of dubious value
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Watch on YouTubeYour ex-husband sounds like a dubious man, but I mean that's wild.
- Your ex-husband sounds like a dubious man, but I mean that's wild.
- They are of dubious reliability to say the least.
- And AI experts were dubious about that.
- You have payouts or pay payments to dubious characters.
- So people were dubious, some people were excited, some were doubtful.
- So I'm a little dubious about the claims of the power of the media.
- And galvanized by this, reformers in parliament are now investigating dubious contracts.
- I'm here working for you using your taxpayer money in dubious ways.
- You might say some of this seems kind of dubious.
- The idea that military intervention would help it is very dubious.
- In fact, we tend to be more dubious about relationships that start really, really slow.
- And our our religious systems have become propositionally dubious.
Examples
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And this stretcher is of dubious quality.
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We spent a lot of money supporting this country for some very dubious reasons.
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I mean the quality might be slightly dubious, but it works.
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For that matter, the public is more than a little dubious about my role in this business.
Fiction book (1993) -
Captain George Williams had his own dubious past.
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And AI experts were dubious about that.
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So saying that it's causing more accidents is a dubious claim.
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But I must tell you in all honesty, I'm extremely dubious about the results.
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They are of dubious reliability to say the least.
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There to witness this experiment were hundreds of spectators, many of them dubious of the whole enterprise.
Academic text (2012)
Synonyms
261
4.2
Not easily believing that something is true
261
2.7
Causing doubt because it seems wrong or illegal
202
5.8
Not certain because people doubt or suspect it
162
3.9
Probably not true or trustworthy
78
4.1
Not able to be trusted to work or be right
78
5.3
Seen as probably dishonest or not trustworthy
54
3.0
Not likely to be true or real
41
3.9
Not feeling sure or confident
21
8.2
Likely to be unsafe or untrustworthy
20
4.8
Not honest or reliable with promises
1
8.6
A little suspicious and not easy to trust
1
9.9
Not sure what will happen or what people will decide
1
9.9
A person or thing that seems dishonest and not trustworthy
1
8.9
Not safe to depend on because they may fail or betray you
1
9.9
Not clearly true or certain
Antonyms
Compounds
How Trustworthy
Surface Forms
Morphology
dubious = doubt (semi-transparent) = dubi + ous
The adjective clearly expresses a relation to 'doubt' via the suffix '-ous', but the form derives from Latin/French (dubi-) rather than productive English formation, so learners may only partially generalize from 'doubt'.
Etymology
Dubious comes from the Latin words dubius and dubitare, which are about 'doubt' and are linked to duo 'two' because they imagine a mind pulled between two choices. So if something is dubious, it is 'not certain' or 'suspicious', like when you have a strong doubt about it.