doubtful
English · Thesaurus
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doubtful
- /ˈdaʊtfəl/
Where it comes from
From Middle English doutfull, douteful, equivalent to doubt + -ful.
adjective more doubtful · most doubtful · doubtfull
- Subject to, or causing doubt.
- Experiencing or showing doubt, skeptical.
- Undecided or of uncertain outcome.
- Fearsome, dreadful.
- Improbable or unlikely.
- Suspicious, or of dubious character. Yet it is not the predominant views of the experts but the views of a minority, mostly of rather doubtful standing in their profession, which are taken up and spread by the intellectuals.
- Unclear or unreliable. The pupils of her great eyes were large in the doubtful lamplight, swallowing their green fires in deep pools of mystery and darkness.
noun doubtfuls · doubtfull
- A doubtful person or thing. They had their lists of Liberals and of the doubtfuls who still remained doubtful. As the election drew near, the force of the whole organization was turned upon these unrepentant doubtfuls.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: dubious, incertain, unsure, questionable, uncertain, dubitable, unsettled, in question, tentative, iffy, suspect, suspicious, suspected, ambiguous, unclear, equivocal
Translations
Every language
adj subject to, or causing doubt
| Español | dudoso |
|---|---|
| हिन्दी | संदेहास्पद sandehāspad |
| Português | duvidoso, dúbio |
| Français | douteux, douteuse |
| Deutsch | zweifelhaft |
| Italiano | dubbio |
| Ελληνικά | αμφίβολος amfívolos |
| Română | dubios, îndoielnic |
| Русский | сомни́тельный somnítelʹnyj |
adj experiencing or showing doubt
| हिन्दी | संदेहास्पद sandehāspad |
|---|---|
| Português | incerto |
| Deutsch | zweifelnd |
| Italiano | discutibile |
| Русский | сомнева́ющийся somnevájuščijsja |
adj undecided or of uncertain outcome
| Português | incerto |
|---|---|
| Deutsch | zweifelhaft |
| Italiano | incerto |
| Русский | сомни́тельный somnítelʹnyj |
adj improbable or unlikely
| Español | dudoso |
|---|---|
| Português | duvidoso |
| Deutsch | zweifelhaft |
| Italiano | improbabile |
| Русский | сомни́тельный somnítelʹnyj |
adj suspicious, or of dubious character
| Deutsch | zweifelhaft |
|---|---|
| Italiano | sospetto |
Talk about this word "doubtful." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/doubtful. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. doubtful. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/doubtful "doubtful." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/doubtful.Cite this
@misc{doubtful_2026,
title = {doubtful},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/doubtful},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
