dispute - Wiktionary, the free dictionary (original) (raw)

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

Proto-Indo-European *-h₂

Proto-Indo-European *-éh₂

Proto-Italic *-āō

English dispute

From Middle English disputen, from Old French desputer (French disputer), from Latin disputāre (“to dispute, discuss, examine, compute, estimate”), from dis- (“apart”) + putāre (“to reckon, consider, think, originally make clean, clear up”), related to purus (“pure”). Compare compute, count, impute, repute, amputate, etc.

dispute (plural disputes)

  1. An argument or disagreement; a failure to agree.
    Synonyms: debate, quarrel
    • 1919, Ellwood Hendrick, Percolator Papers, page 67:
      But is not this dispute over the question whether we have free will or not very like a dispute that we might engage in over the color of a tree — whether it be green or blue?
    1. (law) A disagreement between parties in a contract, lawsuit, treaty, or other legal matter.
      Synonyms: conflict, controversy
      Near-synonyms: claim, question
      • 1927, Ben Morris Selekman, “Synopsis”, in Postponing Strikes: A Study of the Industrial Disputes Investigation Act of Canada, page 28:
        Canadian experience throws light on the relative merits of a separate board for each dispute as compared with a permanent board to hear all disputes.
      • 1964 June, “Motive Power Miscellany: BR Workshops”, in Modern Railways, page 432:
        A "who-does-what" labour dispute at Swindon works during April led to a stoppage of work on the construction of the new 0-6-0 Type 1 diesel-hydraulic locomotives of the D9500 series and work had not been resumed as we closed for press.
  2. (uncountable) Verbal controversy or disagreement; altercation; debate.

argument, failure to agree

verbal controversy

dispute (third-person singular simple present disputes, present participle disputing, simple past and past participle disputed)

  1. (intransitive) to contend in argument; to argue against something maintained, upheld, or claimed, by another.
    • 1886 October – 1887 January, H[enry] Rider Haggard, She: A History of Adventure, London: Longmans, Green, and Co., published 1887, →OCLC:
      "Now, though thy thoughts are green and tender, as becometh one so young, yet are they those of a thinking brain, and in truth thou dost bring back to my mind certain of those old philosophers with whom in days bygone I have disputed at Athens, and at Becca in Arabia, for thou hast the same crabbed air and dusty look, as though thou hadst passed thy days in reading ill-writ Greek, and been stained dark with the grime of manuscripts."
  2. (transitive) to make a subject of disputation; to argue pro and con; to discuss
    Some residents disputed the proposal, saying it was based more on emotion than fact.
  3. to oppose by argument or assertion; to controvert; to express dissent or opposition to; to call in question; to deny the truth or validity of
    to dispute assertions or arguments
    • 1834–1874, George Bancroft, History of the United States, from the Discovery of the American Continent, volume (please specify |volume=I to X), Boston, Mass.: Little, Brown and Company [_et al._], →OCLC:
      to seize goods under the disputed authority of writs of assistance
  4. to strive or contend about; to contest
    • 1855–1858, William H[ickling] Prescott, History of the Reign of Philip the Second, King of Spain, volume (please specify |volume=I to III), Boston, Mass.: Phillips, Sampson, and Company, →OCLC:
      to dispute the possession of the ground with the Spaniards
  5. (obsolete) to struggle against; to resist

to argue against

to argue pro and con; to discuss

to struggle against; to resist

From Latin disputāre.

dispute f (plural disputes)

  1. dispute

dispute f

  1. plural of disputa

dispute

  1. inflection of disputar:
    1. first/third-person singular present subjunctive
    2. third-person singular imperative

dispute f

  1. inflection of dispută:
    1. indefinite plural
    2. indefinite genitive/dative singular

dispute

  1. inflection of disputar:
    1. first/third-person singular present subjunctive
    2. third-person singular imperative