(~s, debating, ~d)
Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English.
1.
A ~ is a discussion about a subject on which people have different views.
An intense ~ is going on within the Israeli government...
There has been a lot of ~ among scholars about this.
= discussion
N-VAR: oft N on/over/about n
2.
A ~ is a formal discussion, for example in a parliament or institution, in which people express different opinions about a particular subject and then vote on it.
There are expected to be some heated ~s in parliament over the next few days.
N-COUNT: oft N on/about n
debating
...debating skills.
N-UNCOUNT: oft N n
3.
If people ~ a topic, they discuss it fairly formally, putting forward different views. You can also say that one person ~s a topic with another person.
The United Nations Security Council will ~ the issue today...
Scholars have ~d whether or not Yagenta became a convert...
He likes to ~ issues with his friends.
V-RECIP: pl-n V n, pl-n V wh, V n with n
4.
If you ~ whether to do something or what to do, you think or talk about possible courses of action before deciding exactly what you are going to do.
Taggart ~d whether to have yet another double vodka...
I ~d going back inside, but decided against it.
VERB: V wh, V -ing
5.
If you say that a matter is open to ~, you mean that people have different opinions about it, or it has not yet been firmly decided.
Which of them has more musical talent is open to ~.
PHRASE: v-link PHR