Where does “controversial” come from?
Controversial derives from Latin controversia, formed from versus (turned against) and the suffix -ia, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European wer- meaning to turn or bend.
controversial (English): Arousing controversy—a debate or discussion of...
Definitions
- Arousing controversy—a debate or discussion of...
Ancestry of “controversial”, step by step
| Step | Language | Word | Meaning |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Latin | contrōversia | a quarrel, dispute, debate |
| 2 | Latin | contrōversus | controversial, debatable, disputed |
| 3 | Latin | versus | turned, changed, having been turned; towards,... |
| 4 | Latin | vertō | to turn, turn oneself, direct one's way, to turn about, turn around, revolve |
| 5 | Proto-Italic | wertō | to turn |
| 6 | Proto-Indo-European | wert- | to turn, to rotate |
| 7 | Proto-Indo-European | wer- | to burn; to cover, heed, notice; squirrel |
Words derived from “controversial”
- uncontroversial
- controversially
- controversialist
- noncontroversial
- uncontroversially
- controversiality
- controversialism
- controversialness
- controversialize
- controversial
- non-controversial
- postcontroversial
- precontroversial
- quasicontroversial
- semicontroversial
- supercontroversial
- ultracontroversial
- controversieel
- uncontroversialness
- controversialmente