Literary notes about Debatable (AI summary)
The word "debatable" appears in literature with a range of meanings, often reflecting uncertainty or dispute. In historical and geographic contexts, it is used to describe territories of uncertain control or definition—as seen when areas between rival groups are referred to as “debatable land” [1, 2, 3]. In more abstract discussions, such as debates over methods or classifications, it serves to question the validity or practicality of ideas, like the feasibility of grafting chestnuts or evaluating the nature of a question [4, 5, 6, 7]. Additionally, the term finds a unique place in literary titles and descriptions, adding a sense of ambiguity to both physical boundaries and conceptual spaces [8, 9, 10].
- A great plateau divides the two, and though this fell chiefly on the Moorish side, it was to some extent debatable land and insecurely held.
— from The Moors in Spain by Stanley Lane-Poole - There are no deserts in the Gulf states, and the word means simply an uninhabited region, usually the debatable strip between two tribes.
— from Myths of the Cherokee by James Mooney - The debatable land was now much narrower, and the hostile forces were almost in contact at various places along the frontier.
— from The Moors in Spain by Stanley Lane-Poole - The practicability of budding or grafting chestnuts is debatable.
— from Northern Nut Growers Association Report of the Proceedings at the 44th Annual Meeting - Is this question debatable?
— from The Art of Public Speaking by Dale Carnegie and J. Berg Esenwein - 3. Is it a debatable question?
— from The Art of Public Speaking by Dale Carnegie and J. Berg Esenwein - In the debatable class there ought to be a definition of all disputed matters.
— from Phaedrus by Plato - He published two works on this subject, "Footfalls on the Boundary of Another World," and "The Debatable Land between this World and the Next."
— from History of Woman Suffrage, Volume I - After the duettists had retired, a woman of debatable age sang a negro melody.
— from Maggie: A Girl of the Streets by Stephen Crane - (the debatable initial) Cavendish, Esq., Styles Court, Styles St. Mary, Essex.”
— from The Mysterious Affair at Styles by Agatha Christie
