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controversy
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
controversy
noun
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
a storm of controversy
▪ His book raised a storm of controversy.
a subject of controversy (=a subject people disagree about strongly)
▪ Nuclear power is still the subject of considerable controversy.
fuel speculation/rumours/controversy etc
▪ Progress was slow, fueling concerns that the stadium would not be finished on time.
provoke debate/discussion/controversy
▪ A new book criticising Hollywood has provoked fierce debate in the US.
COLLOCATIONS FROM CORPUS
■ ADJECTIVE
considerable
▪ When he first became the candidate more than two years ago it caused considerable controversy.
▪ This book was the cause of considerable controversy when first published in the United Kingdom last year.
▪ The central section caused considerable controversy.
▪ The introduction of the community charge aroused considerable controversy around three main issues.
▪ This department was responsible for the eventual establishment of school clinics throughout the country, but only slowly and after considerable controversy.
▪ Despite considerable controversy, a Children Act was passed in 1975 based on these recommendations.
▪ Special education has been subject to considerable controversy for many years.
continuing
▪ For these reasons, the precise extent of the social cost of monopoly remains a subject of continuing controversy.
▪ On the other hand, it may change financial reporting practice because of what it represents in the continuing controversies about professional self-regulation.
current
▪ These may generate considerable opposition as the current controversy at Avebury suggests.
▪ The building's hall is still frequently a venue for those exercising their Nonconformist Consciences on current political controversies.
▪ Should unpublished data be included in meta-analyses? Current convictions and controversies.
▪ In this, Ken played a drama instructor caught up in the then current controversy over corporal punishment.
▪ The current focus of controversy is the implementation of the White Paper Working for patients.
▪ So I will evade current controversy and take a step back into history.
fierce
▪ And already it looks like stirring up fierce controversy.
▪ Accordingly, they have been the subject of intensive research and fierce controversy.
▪ The murder of anti-Soviet activists abroad would stir up fierce controversy at home.
great
▪ The greatest controversy concerns social science books screened to ensure that their version of history is acceptable to the government.
▪ There is a great deal of controversy over the merits of bleached and unbleached flour.
▪ While there was no doubt that Roosevelt would be the Democratic candidate that year, the choice of his running-mate caused greater controversy.
▪ Along with it was launched one of the great controversies in the history of science that continues even today.
▪ Whether that will arouse great controversy among any but the most convinced monarchists is doubtful.
▪ It is not untrue that where one finds the greatest controversy, there he will also find the least comprehension.
▪ This remains a point of great controversy.
late
▪ Funding delays are the latest controversy to surround the building, which used to be a busy shopping centre off Skinnergate.
▪ They might follow the latest controversy in the newspapers, but there is peace, and often lethargy, in their parishes.
▪ This bespoke greater intellectual confidence than was to be evident at later stages of controversy.
▪ With this latest controversy we can throw in political fund-raising, too.
major
▪ It is often suggested that the succession issue was a major source of controversy between Whigs and Tories.
▪ At the 1987 Labour Conference the issue of candidate selection proved to be a major source of controversy.
▪ A prominent figure in the major controversy that arose was Mrs Castle.
▪ A second major controversy concerns the possible width of the wavecut bench.
political
▪ Both these matters were deep in political controversy, the second in particular being strongly resisted by the police as well as by the Government.
▪ We were no longer merely the soldiers of a political controversy....
▪ The political controversy over the Habre affair has been given a new lease of life.
▪ During the 1980s, the government of London again became a major matter of political controversy.
▪ The building's hall is still frequently a venue for those exercising their Nonconformist Consciences on current political controversies.
▪ Some issues are organized into political controversy and debate, while others are organized out.
▪ The Widdicombe Committee was appointed in 1985 at a time of high political controversy about the activities of certain local authorities.
▪ Echoes of political controversy are scattered over the literary productivity of the age.
public
▪ He did not, however, avoid later public controversy with Hunt's son, Thornton, on this matter.
▪ It is not altogether idle to speculate about what seems to be driving the private ambivalence and the public controversy.
▪ They published some details - and that's when the tapes in Britain were made public and the controversy erupted.
▪ Even as Hallinan moves to distance himself from high-profile public controversy, signs point to continued trouble ahead, politically speaking.
▪ At first glance, this rhetorical approach seems to direct the study of attitudes to that of public argument and controversy.
▪ Peter Green describes his intervention in one recent matter of urgent public controversy.
recent
▪ Introduction Prior to the recent controversy over the transfer of arms, little international attention was devoted to Sierra Leone.
▪ And there was the recent controversy over Brian Blades, implicated in the shooting of his cousin.
▪ An example of this can be taken from the recent contraception controversy in the Republic, which began in the 1960s.
▪ In more recent years the controversy has died down a little, although it has still not ceased.
religious
▪ The second half of the nineteenth century was a time of religious revival and controversy, especially in the Low Country.
▪ Energies which had gone into religious controversy were being devoted to trade and industry.
▪ They could be bound together by the belief, found in Bacon, that religious controversies were an impediment to science.
▪ Dering was a scholarly man, who maintained an informed interest in religious controversy and dabbled in literature.
▪ By focusing on the educational needs of the poor, the act avoided the religious controversy that killed its proposals under Kennedy.
▪ Besides seeking his help in religious controversies, the King made use of Andrewes' prodigious learning in other ways.
■ VERB
arouse
▪ Whether that will arouse great controversy among any but the most convinced monarchists is doubtful.
▪ Apart from Mary, however, black images are too rare to arouse much comment or controversy.
▪ The introduction of the community charge aroused considerable controversy around three main issues.
▪ It aroused as much controversy as any Alsop column up to that time.
▪ As might be expected, such a policy aroused enormous controversy and opposition, and was later modified.
▪ Political Pluralism and the Media Media analysis often arouses controversy, not just about the findings themselves but about their policy implications.
▪ The justification for Gloucester's assumption of power confused contemporaries and has continued to arouse controversy.
▪ What were the central features of this democracy, which aroused such controversy at the time, and still provokes debate today?
avoid
▪ He did not, however, avoid later public controversy with Hunt's son, Thornton, on this matter.
▪ So far, their scheme has avoided controversy.
▪ In some situations this can lead to deliberate fudging of issues soas to avoid controversy.
▪ On this subject as well as others, Cooley avoids raging controversies as an intellectual source.
▪ A systems approach to budgeting that focuses on the outcomes and objectives of government policy can not avoid controversy.
▪ Trying to avoid more controversy, the funds declined to say anything about Coles Myer.
▪ But certain teachers may lack the competence and expertise to avoid controversy completely.
▪ There was no way they could have avoided controversy.
become
▪ Understandably, I suppose, he did not want Reuters to become embroiled in controversy.
▪ Jerry Brown, which became the center of controversy because of its modernist style.
▪ Wilkinson himself became involved in the controversy when Batty made his way to the touchline to be substituted after a 38minute flare-up.
▪ The event has since become a controversy.
▪ Her frustration over the chaos that became the Cleveland controversy is palpable.
cause
▪ I think Jim Mason's viewpoint is also urging for cooperation with the environment but he may cause a bit of controversy.
▪ In one sense this should have caused no controversy.
▪ Since the book seemed to be one that would cause some controversy, she had better proceed with caution.
▪ But the speaker is not a wealthy man and could dip into campaign coffers, causing more controversy.
▪ When he first became the candidate more than two years ago it caused considerable controversy.
▪ This distinction causes some controversy and confusion.
▪ It is compatible with the canon of artistic detachment, but it can cause controversy.
▪ At all costs we must avoid appearing to want attention and to cause controversy.
continue
▪ Until a definition for asthma itself can be agreed the problem of defining attacks will continue to generate controversy.
▪ The justification for Gloucester's assumption of power confused contemporaries and has continued to arouse controversy.
▪ His acceptance of an honorary degree from the anti-Catholic Bob Jones University in 1999 continues to stir controversy.
create
▪ Not surprisingly, the building of branch lines and the provision of freight sidings never failed to create controversy.
▪ He could not do this with-out creating controversy, without startling the press from time to time.
▪ The move, disclosed by health chiefs, is likely to create controversy after the outcry over school league tables.
▪ But ironically, a storm that never materialized created the most controversy.
▪ No company, in my view, would dare to create a controversy by ruining the night sky.
▪ Even the first census, in 1790, created controversy.
▪ Kim Ku was ambitious for power and discerned the opportunities created by the controversy over trusteeship.
▪ Charles and Diana also created tabloid headlines and controversy.
end
▪ Even then there was no ending to the controversy over Hume's beliefs.
follow
▪ Some of these questions are confronted by the Supreme Court in the following controversy.
▪ They might follow the latest controversy in the newspapers, but there is peace, and often lethargy, in their parishes.
fuel
▪ His criticism will fuel controversy about the book on the island, where a film starring Nicolas Cage is being shot.
▪ The Hubble already has helped fuel a raging controversy over the true age of the universe.
generate
▪ The short list for the £20,000 prize, which will be awarded on November 28, has already generated a small controversy.
▪ Like all great ideas, it generated internal controversies.
▪ Until a definition for asthma itself can be agreed the problem of defining attacks will continue to generate controversy.
▪ The Alsop view inevitably generated controversy.
▪ This will inevitably generate heated controversy, fuelled by continuing confusion over the technologies.
▪ There would be many more such articles in the future, and many would generate substantial controversy.
▪ The length of the sentences generated a related controversy which was reported extensively by the press.
▪ Political contributions that would have been major scandals in the United States have generated only minor controversies.
involve
▪ Wilkinson himself became involved in the controversy when Batty made his way to the touchline to be substituted after a 38minute flare-up.
provoke
▪ Although these various sources of other income provide substantial sums of money, they only occasionally provoke political controversy.
▪ The poem is given here in its 1807 version, since this provoked the controversy over it.
spark
▪ But his romance with Karen has sparked controversy.
▪ Independent councillor Derek McVickers sparked controversy when he said he understood Albert Dryden's frustration at planning decisions.
stir
▪ And already it looks like stirring up fierce controversy.
▪ The dismissal of such people would stir up controversy the president would just as soon avoid.
▪ His remarks are nevertheless bound to stir controversy.
▪ When they stirred controversies, they were generally reported by the feature pages and gossip columns of newspapers.
▪ Male speaker Anybody with strong convictions that what he is doing is right is bound to stir up controversy.
▪ The course was moved to Reinhardt College in 1994, after complaints about its political overtones stirred a controversy at Kennesaw State.
▪ But his officials are stirring up their own controversy over social policy.
▪ But the role has put him at odds with the United States and stirred controversy in his own country.
surround
▪ Since then the future of Holly Park has been surrounded in controversy.
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
▪ Controversy surrounds the TV show, which many consider to be racist, sexist, and homophobic.
▪ Dahl's letter to "The Times" provoked controversy.
▪ He resigned Tuesday after months of controversy.
▪ There has been a huge controversy over where to put the city's new sports stadium and who should build it.
EXAMPLES FROM CORPUS
▪ It was in the International Amphitheatre, and there had been a big controversy about it.
▪ Rather than ending divisions in the Labour Party, the controversies of 1935 mark the beginning of a new period of prolonged disunity.
▪ Still, the press jumped on the pygmy owl angle, splashing headlines about the controversy across the top of both dailies.
▪ These issues are still the basis for debate and controversy.
▪ They react to the latest discoveries with blasé aplomb, remaining unruffled by theological controversy.
▪ Though angry, both sides quickly sought to defuse the controversy.
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Controversy

Controversy \Con"tro*ver`sy\, n.; pl. Controversies. [L. controversia, fr. controversus turned against, disputed; contro- = contra + versus, p. p. of vertere to turn. See Verse.]

  1. Contention; dispute; debate; discussion; agitation of contrary opinions.

    This left no room for controversy about the title.
    --Locke.

    A dispute is commonly oral, and a controversy in writing.
    --Johnson.

  2. Quarrel; strife; cause of variance; difference.

    The Lord hath a controversy with the nations.
    --Jer. xxv. 31.

  3. A suit in law or equity; a question of right. [Obs.]

    When any man that had a controversy came to the king for judgment.
    --2 Sam. xv. 2.

    Syn: Dispute; debate; disputation; disagreement; altercation; contention; wrangle; strife; quarrel.

Related phrases:
Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
controversy

late 14c., from Old French controversie or directly from Latin controversia, from controversus "turned in an opposite direction, disputed, turned against," from contra- "against" (see contra) + versus (see verse).

Wiktionary
controversy

n. A debate, discussion of opposing opinions; strife.

WordNet
controversy

n. a contentious speech act; a dispute where there is strong disagreement; "they were involved in a violent argument" [syn: contention, contestation, disputation, disceptation, tilt, argument, arguing]

Wikipedia
Controversy

Controversy is a state of prolonged public dispute or debate, usually concerning a matter of conflicting opinion or point of view. The word was coined from the Latin controversia, as a composite of controversus – "turned in an opposite direction," from contra – "against" – and vertere – to turn, or versus (see verse), hence, "to turn against."

The most applicable or well known controversial subjects, topics or areas are politics, religion, philosophy, parenting and sex. History is similarly controversial. Other prominent areas of controversy are economics, science, finances, culture, education, the military, society, celebrities, organisation, the media, age, gender, and race. Controversy in matters of theology has traditionally been particularly heated, giving rise to the phrase odium theologicum. Controversial issues are held as potentially divisive in a given society, because they can lead to tension and ill will, and as a result they are often considered taboo to be discussed in the light of company in many cultures.

Controversy (Prince album)

Controversy is the fourth studio album by American recording artist Prince. It was released on October 14, 1981 by Warner Bros. Records.

Controversy (disambiguation)

Controversy is the disagreement and disapproval of or about someone or something. It typically occurs when criticism is prolonged and public.

Controversy may also refer to:

  • Controversy (law), the legal usage of the term
  • Controversy (Prince album), a 1981 album by Prince
  • "Controversy" (song), a 1981 single by Prince from the album of the same name
  • " Controversy (Live in Hawaii)", a 2004 digital single by Prince
  • Controversy (Willie D album), a 1989 album by Willie D
  • Controversy, an album by Skull Duggery
  • Controversies about Opus Dei
  • Scientology controversy
Controversy (song)

"Controversy" is a song by American musician Prince, the lead single and title track to his 1981 album. The song addresses speculation about Prince at the time such as his sexuality, gender, religion, and racial background, and how he could not understand the curiosity surrounding him.

Controversy (Willie D album)

Controversy is the debut album of Willie D (released as "Willie Dee"). "Do It Like a G.O." featured Willie D, Prince Johnny C, and Sire Jukebox on this album. The song was also released on the Geto Boys album Grip It! On That Other Level redone featuring Willie D, Scarface, and Bushwick Bill.

Controversy (law)

In jurisprudence, a controversy differs from a case; while the latter includes all suits, criminal as well as civil, a controversy is a purely civil proceeding.

For example, the Case or Controversy Clause of Article Three of the United States Constitution (Section 2, Clause 1) states that "the judicial Power shall extend ... to Controversies to which the United States shall be a Party". This clause has been deemed to impose a requirement that United States federal courts are not permitted to hear cases that do not pose an actual controversy—that is, an actual dispute between adverse parties which is capable of being resolved by the court. In addition to setting out the scope of the jurisdiction of the federal judiciary, it also prohibits courts from issuing advisory opinions, or from hearing cases that are either unripe, meaning that the controversy has not arisen yet, or moot, meaning that the controversy has already been resolved.

Amount in controversy is a term in United States civil procedure to denote a requirement that persons seeking to bring a lawsuit in a particular court must be suing for a certain minimum amount before that court may hear the case.

Category:Legal terms

Usage examples of "controversy".

But then that spring of 1791, Adams and Jefferson were caught up in a public controversy that neither anticipated or wanted and that put the first severe strain on their already cooling friendship.

Aswydd lineage, swore fealty to Tristen in such absolute terms it offended the Guelen clerks who had come with Tristen, for Crissand owned Tristen as his overlord after the Aswydd kind, aetheling, a royal lord, reopening all the old controversy about the status of Amefel as a sovereign kingdom.

Hall, Bishop and satirist, who took an active part in the Arminian and Calvinistic controversy in the English Church, is of particular interest to Norwich, of which he became Bishop in 1641.

Church of Holland is now passing through the most important crisis in its history since the Arminian controversy.

The controversy concerning the precise time of the celebration of Easter, armed the bishops of Asia and Italy against each other, and was considered as the most important business of this period of leisure and tranquillity.

During the same reign a controversy developed between Chinese Buddhist adherents of the rapid path of Buddhahood and Indian defenders of the classical Mahayana or bodhisattva progression by stages.

Had one of the local children really disappeared, or was that some gambit on the part of Crush Bonbon to start a controversy?

Motel to be followed by the numerous guests into the generous dining area where the bride cut a cake topped by a spun sugar approximation of the towering artifact beyond the glass where their romance had first been kindled amid the passions that had blazed forth here on a darker occasion as the screen revisited the floodlit melee of flying rocks and beer cans, Stars, Bars and Stripes asunder, signs and placards brandished and trampled GOD IS JUDGE aloft and IMPEACH smouldering on the judicial robes of controversy lately put to rest by the conciliatory visit of Senator wait stop it, what are you doing!

The Guiccioli was to him a Myrrha, but the Carbonari were around, and in the controversy, in which Sardanapalus is engaged, between the obligations of his royalty and his inclinations for pleasure, we have a vivid insight of the cogitation of the poet, whether to take a part in the hazardous activity which they were preparing, or to remain in the seclusion and festal repose of which he was then in possession.

They continued in use in the west and became of the utmost significance in the christological controversies of the fifth century.

The literature of the Cocceian controversy abounds in as violent and harsh expressions as have disgraced theological history at any time.

The Treaty of Peace with Spain, the treaty to settle the Behring Sea controversy, the treaty establishing the boundary line between Canada and Alaska, were negotiated by commissions containing Senators and Representatives.

While the Concerns screamed bloody murder at the prospect of Haluk trade disruption, the tabloid media would joyfully fan the flames of controversy.

The nearest Cordoban came to treading on the edge of the controversy regarding the proposed redesigning was to ask me if I had yet made up my mind about what I would recommend.

A State cannot denationalize a foreign subject who has not complied with federal naturalization law and constitute him a citizen of the United States, or of the State, so as to deprive the federal courts of jurisdiction over a controversy between him and a citizen of a State.