Controversial in Different Languages
Discover 'Controversial' in 134 Languages: Dive into Translations, Hear Pronunciations, and Uncover Cultural Insights.
Updated on March 6, 2024
Controversial is a word that carries significant weight and cultural importance. It's often used to describe ideas, statements, or actions that elicit strong reactions and debate. From politics to pop culture, controversial topics have a way of sparking conversation and shaping society. Understanding the translation of controversial in different languages can provide valuable insights into how other cultures approach and discuss sensitive subjects.
For instance, in Spanish, the word controversial is 'controvertido.' In French, it's 'controversé.' And in German, it's 'umstritten.' Each language's translation offers a unique perspective on the concept of controversy, reflecting cultural nuances and values. By learning these translations, we can broaden our understanding of the world and deepen our appreciation for the diversity of human thought and expression.
In the following list, you'll find translations of controversial in a variety of languages. Whether you're a language learner, a cultural enthusiast, or simply curious, this information is sure to enrich your knowledge and spark your interest in the fascinating world of language and culture.
Controversial
Controversial in Sub-Saharan African Languages
| Afrikaans | omstrede | ||
| The Afrikaans word "omstrede" is derived from the Dutch word "omstreden", which means "disputed" or "contested". | |||
| Amharic | አወዛጋቢ | ||
| Etymology: አወዛ (to change) + ጋቢ (participant, agent); Literally: "one who changes something" | |||
| Hausa | mai rigima | ||
| The term 'mai rigima' has an etymological root meaning 'hard-headedness,' indicating someone unwilling to compromise. | |||
| Igbo | na-arụrịta ụka | ||
| Malagasy | mahabe resaka | ||
| The word "mahabe resaka" is also used to describe someone who is stubborn or headstrong. | |||
| Nyanja (Chichewa) | wotsutsa | ||
| Wotsutsa is a variant of the more common "tsutsa". | |||
| Shona | gakava | ||
| In Shona, "gakava" also means "a kind of bird found near marshy land". | |||
| Somali | muran leh | ||
| Originating from the Arabic word 'munaazir' meaning 'disputer', the word 'muran leh' is often confused with an alternative meaning: 'debatable'. | |||
| Sesotho | tsekisano | ||
| The word "tsekisano" is derived from the root "tsekisa" which means "to argue" or "to debate". | |||
| Swahili | utata | ||
| "Utata" can also mean "riddle" or "puzzle" in Swahili. | |||
| Xhosa | impikiswano | ||
| "Impikiswano" also means "debate" or "argument" in Xhosa. | |||
| Yoruba | ariyanjiyan | ||
| The word "ariyanjiyan" is derived from the Yoruba word "ariyanji," which means "dispute" or "argument." | |||
| Zulu | impikiswano | ||
| Impikiswano' originates from Zulu and Xhosa roots, where it carries the dual meaning of both 'controversial' and 'debate' | |||
| Bambara | lagosilen | ||
| Ewe | si nye nyahehe | ||
| Kinyarwanda | impaka | ||
| Lingala | ebimisi matata | ||
| Luganda | okwawukanya mu ndowooza | ||
| Sepedi | ngangišanwa | ||
| Twi (Akan) | akyinnyeɛ wɔ ho | ||
Controversial in North African & Middle Eastern Languages
| Arabic | مثيرة للجدل | ||
| The Arabic word "مثيرة للجدل" literally translates to "arousing argument," reflecting its connotation as a topic that incites debate and disagreement. | |||
| Hebrew | שנוי במחלוקת | ||
| The Hebrew word "שנוי במחלוקת" is a combination of the words "שנוי" (changed) and "מחלוקת" (dispute), implying a change in opinion or viewpoint. | |||
| Pashto | متناقض | ||
| The Pashto word "متناقض" can also mean "contradictory" or "inconsistent". | |||
| Arabic | مثيرة للجدل | ||
| The Arabic word "مثيرة للجدل" literally translates to "arousing argument," reflecting its connotation as a topic that incites debate and disagreement. | |||
Controversial in Western European Languages
| Albanian | i diskutueshëm | ||
| The word "i diskutueshëm" can also mean "up for debate" or "open to discussion" in Albanian. | |||
| Basque | polemikoa | ||
| The Basque word "polemikoa" is derived from the Greek word "polemikos," which means "warlike" or "contentious." | |||
| Catalan | controvertit | ||
| The word "controvertit" derives from Latin "controversia", meaning disagreement or dispute. | |||
| Croatian | kontroverzno | ||
| "Kontroverzno" is a Croatian word meaning "controversial", but can also mean "ambiguous" or "disputable". | |||
| Danish | kontroversiel | ||
| The Danish word "kontroversiel" derives from the Latin words "controversia" and "controversus", meaning "dispute" or "dispute-able" | |||
| Dutch | controversieel | ||
| The word "controversieel" in Dutch originates from French and can also mean debatable, doubtful, and contentious. | |||
| English | controversial | ||
| The word "controversial" comes from the Latin "controversus," which means "turned against" or "disputed." | |||
| French | controversé | ||
| In French, "controversé" literally means "turned over", implying an ongoing debate rather than the finality suggested by the English "controversial." | |||
| Frisian | kontroversjeel | ||
| It can also mean 'difficult' or 'dangerous'. | |||
| Galician | controvertido | ||
| In Galician, "controvertido" can also mean "disputed" or "debated." | |||
| German | umstritten | ||
| The word "umstritten" can also mean "disputed" or "contested". | |||
| Icelandic | umdeildur | ||
| Umdeildur comes from the Old Norse word "deila", meaning "to divide". | |||
| Irish | conspóideach | ||
| Conspóideach is also a term for a person who has a tendency to cause controversy or conflict. | |||
| Italian | controverso | ||
| The Italian word "controverso" originally meant "disputed" or "contested". | |||
| Luxembourgish | kontrovers | ||
| Derived from the French word "controverse" (argument), the Luxembourgish noun "kontrovers" can also refer to a controversy, dispute, or disagreement. | |||
| Maltese | kontroversjali | ||
| The word "kontroversjali" is derived from the French word "controverse" which means "dispute" or "argument". | |||
| Norwegian | kontroversiell | ||
| Norwegian "kontroversiell" derives from French "controverse", based on Latin "controversia" which means "debate", "quarrel", and "dispute". | |||
| Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | controverso | ||
| The word "controverso" comes from the Latin "controversus", meaning "turned in opposite directions" or "disputed." | |||
| Scots Gaelic | connspaideach | ||
| The term 'connspaideach' is used in Scots Gaelic to refer to both 'controversial' and 'argumentative' topics. | |||
| Spanish | polémico | ||
| "Polémico" derives from the Greek "polemos," meaning "war" or "conflict." | |||
| Swedish | kontroversiell | ||
| The word "kontroversiell" comes from the Latin word "controversia", meaning "dispute" or "quarrel". | |||
| Welsh | dadleuol | ||
| The word "dadleuol" can also mean "debatable" or "disputable". | |||
Controversial in Eastern European Languages
| Belarusian | супярэчлівы | ||
| The word | |||
| Bosnian | kontroverzan | ||
| The word "kontroverzan" can also refer to a disagreement or dispute that is not necessarily negative or harmful. | |||
| Bulgarian | спорен | ||
| The word "спорен" can also mean "disputable" or "open to debate" in Bulgarian. | |||
| Czech | kontroverzní | ||
| In Czech, "kontroverzní" does not only mean “controversial” but also “suspicious” or “doubtful”. | |||
| Estonian | vastuoluline | ||
| Estonian word "vastuoluline" is translated from Russian "спорный". "Спор" (spor) in Russian means a debate, argument, dispute. | |||
| Finnish | kiistanalainen | ||
| The word "kiistanalainen" is derived from the verb "kiistaa", meaning "to dispute" or "to argue". | |||
| Hungarian | vitatott | ||
| The Hungarian word "vitatott" literally means "debated", and is often used to refer to something that is the subject of a lively debate. | |||
| Latvian | strīdīgs | ||
| The word "strīdīgs" comes from the Proto-Indo-European root *strey- ("to twist"), which is also the origin of the English word "strong". | |||
| Lithuanian | prieštaringas | ||
| The word "prieštaringas" is derived from the word "prieštarauti", meaning to contradict or oppose. | |||
| Macedonian | контроверзен | ||
| The word "controversial" is ultimately derived from the Latin word "controversia" which means "a dispute". | |||
| Polish | kontrowersyjny | ||
| The Polish word "kontrowersyjny" derives from the Latin "contra" (against) and "vertere" (to turn), indicating a "turning against" or "disagreement". | |||
| Romanian | controversat | ||
| In Romanian, "controversat" can also mean "disputed", "debated", or "questionable". | |||
| Russian | противоречивый | ||
| The word "противоречивый" is derived from the root "речь", meaning "speech", and the prefix "проти", meaning "against", suggesting "contradictory speech". | |||
| Serbian | контроверзан | ||
| Kontroverzan is derived from the Latin word "controversus," which means "turned against" or "disputed." | |||
| Slovak | kontroverzné | ||
| "Controversial " (kontroverzné in Slovak) originates from a Latin word for debate. | |||
| Slovenian | sporen | ||
| The word "sporen" is the past participle of the verb "sporiti", which means "to be controversial" in Slovenian. | |||
| Ukrainian | суперечливий | ||
| Суперечливий comes from супроти (against) and річ (thing), meaning 'against two things', thus controversial. | |||
Controversial in South Asian Languages
| Bengali | বিতর্কিত | ||
| বিতর্কিত is derived from the root word বিতর্ক meaning debate or argument, and can also mean debatable or disputable | |||
| Gujarati | વિવાદસ્પદ | ||
| વિવાદસ્પદ is derived from Sanskrit and literally means 'debatable', referring to something that is open to dispute or argument. | |||
| Hindi | विवादास्पद | ||
| विवादास्पद' originates from the Sanskrit term 'विवाद', meaning 'dispute' or 'argument', and 'आस्पद', meaning 'foundation' or 'basis'. | |||
| Kannada | ವಿವಾದಾತ್ಮಕ | ||
| The word "ವಿವಾದಾತ್ಮಕ" (controversial) has also been used in the sense of "debatable" or "disputable" in Kannada. | |||
| Malayalam | വിവാദപരമാണ് | ||
| Marathi | वादग्रस्त | ||
| The word "वादग्रस्त" in Marathi comes from the Sanskrit word "विवाद" meaning "dispute" or "quarrel" and the suffix "ग्रस्त" meaning "seized" or "affected". | |||
| Nepali | विवादास्पद | ||
| The word "विवादास्पद" (controversial) literally means "causing dispute" in Nepali. | |||
| Punjabi | ਵਿਵਾਦਪੂਰਨ | ||
| Sinhala (Sinhalese) | මතභේදාත්මක ය | ||
| It can also denote 'controversial' or "disputed," especially in religious or political contexts." | |||
| Tamil | சர்ச்சைக்குரிய | ||
| It is used in Tamil to mean 'debatable', 'disputable', and 'questionable', similar to the word 'controversial' in English. | |||
| Telugu | వివాదాస్పదమైనది | ||
| Urdu | متنازعہ | ||
| The Urdu word "متنازعہ" (controversial) can also refer to a disputed territory or a matter that is being argued about. | |||
Controversial in East Asian Languages
| Chinese (Simplified) | 有争议的 | ||
| 该词在争议（disagreement）语境下的使用早于其争议性（disputable）语境。 | |||
| Chinese (Traditional) | 有爭議的 | ||
| 有爭議的的本意是容易引發爭執，後來引申為引起爭論的、有歧義的。 | |||
| Japanese | 物議を醸す | ||
| The word 物議を醸す is composed of 物 (thing), 議 (discussion), and 醸す (to cause to arise), and literally means "to cause something to be discussed." | |||
| Korean | 논란의 여지가있는 | ||
| In Korean, "논란의 여지가 있는" can also mean "not yet decided" or "open to debate." | |||
| Mongolian | маргаантай | ||
| The element "-тай" can appear at the end of a stem to form an adjective denoting a characteristic of that which is denoted by the stem. | |||
| Myanmar (Burmese) | အငြင်းပွားဖွယ် | ||
Controversial in South East Asian Languages
| Indonesian | kontroversial | ||
| The Indonesian word "kontroversial" is derived from the Dutch word "controversioneel", which itself comes from the Latin word "controversia" meaning "dispute, debate". | |||
| Javanese | kontroversial | ||
| In Javanese, "kontroversial" can also refer to someone who likes to stir up trouble or create chaos. | |||
| Khmer | ចម្រូងចម្រាស់ | ||
| Lao | ຖົກຖຽງ | ||
| ຖົກຖຽງ is also used to describe the process of debating a topic or argument, or to describe a situation where different opinions or viewpoints are expressed or discussed. | |||
| Malay | kontroversi | ||
| The word 'kontroversi' in Malay is derived from the Portuguese word 'controversia', which means 'dispute' or 'argument'. | |||
| Thai | แย้ง | ||
| The Thai word แย้ง can also mean "to object" or "to disagree". | |||
| Vietnamese | gây tranh cãi | ||
| The word "gây tranh cãi" can also mean "provoking debate" or "causing disagreement" | |||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kontrobersyal | ||
Controversial in Central Asian Languages
| Azerbaijani | mübahisəli | ||
| Mübahisəli means open to debate, especially because of conflicting views. | |||
| Kazakh | даулы | ||
| "даулы" is also used to describe someone or something that is 'unlucky' or 'unfortunate'. | |||
| Kyrgyz | талаштуу | ||
| In addition to "controversial," Талаштуу can refer to a heated or intense discussion | |||
| Tajik | баҳснок | ||
| The word "баҳснок" is derived from the Persian word "bahs" meaning "debate" or "argument" | |||
| Turkmen | jedelli | ||
| Uzbek | bahsli | ||
| "Bahsli" also means "relating to a festival" in Uzbek. | |||
| Uyghur | تالاش-تارتىش | ||
Controversial in Pacific Languages
| Hawaiian | hoʻopaʻapaʻa | ||
| The term hoʻopaʻapaʻa derives from the verb hoʻopau, meaning "to finish, complete, or end," and ʻapaʻa, meaning "to be opposed, disagree, or quarrel." | |||
| Maori | tautohenga | ||
| The term "tautohenga" can also refer to an argument or debate. | |||
| Samoan | feteʻenaʻi | ||
| Feteʻenaʻi can also mean "disputed", "doubtful", "uncertain", or "ambiguous" in Samoan. | |||
| Tagalog (Filipino) | kontrobersyal | ||
| The Tagalog term "kontrobersyal" is derived from the Spanish word "controversial", which in turn comes from the Latin word "controversia", meaning "dispute" or "debate." | |||
Controversial in American Indigenous Languages
| Aymara | mayja | ||
| Guarani | mboikovaikuaáva | ||
Controversial in International Languages
| Esperanto | polemika | ||
| "Polemika" in Esperanto derives from the Greek "polemos" (war), hinting at its contentious nature. | |||
| Latin | disputate | ||
| Disputate, from the Latin word 'disputare,' originally meant 'to reason,' 'to debate,' or 'to discuss.' | |||
Controversial in Others Languages
| Greek | αμφιλεγόμενος | ||
| The word "αμφιλεγόμενος" (controversial) is derived from the Greek words "αμφί" (around) and "λέγειν" (to speak), meaning "spoken about from all sides". | |||
| Hmong | muaj kev sib cav | ||
| The word "muaj kev sib cav" in Hmong can also mean "debatable" or "disputed". | |||
| Kurdish | gengeşî | ||
| The word "gengeşî" can also mean "suspicious" or "untrustworthy" in Kurdish. | |||
| Turkish | kontrollü | ||
| The Turkish word "kontrollü" derives from the French word "contrôler" meaning "check", "supervise", or "examine." | |||
| Xhosa | impikiswano | ||
| "Impikiswano" also means "debate" or "argument" in Xhosa. | |||
| Yiddish | קאָנטראָווערסיאַל | ||
| In Yiddish, like in English, "controversial" can also mean "disputable." | |||
| Zulu | impikiswano | ||
| Impikiswano' originates from Zulu and Xhosa roots, where it carries the dual meaning of both 'controversial' and 'debate' | |||
| Assamese | বিবাদগ্ৰস্ত | ||
| Aymara | mayja | ||
| Bhojpuri | विवादास्पद | ||
| Dhivehi | ދެކޮޅަށްވެސް ވާހަކަ ދެއްކޭ | ||
| Dogri | झमेलेदार | ||
| Filipino (Tagalog) | kontrobersyal | ||
| Guarani | mboikovaikuaáva | ||
| Ilocano | kontrobersial | ||
| Krio | agyumɛnt | ||
| Kurdish (Sorani) | مشتومڕدار | ||
| Maithili | विवाद बला | ||
| Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯆꯌꯦꯠꯅꯕ | ||
| Mizo | inhnial theihna | ||
| Oromo | yaada falmisiisaa | ||
| Odia (Oriya) | ବିବାଦୀୟ | | ||
| Quechua | controversial | ||
| Sanskrit | विवादास्पद | ||
| Tatar | бәхәсле | ||
| Tigrinya | ዘከራኽር | ||
| Tsonga | twisiseki | ||