problematic

• POS: Adjective
• HYPHEN: prob=lem=at=ic

CIDE DICTIONARY

problematic, a. [L. problematicus, Gr. : cf. F. problématique.].

 Having the nature of a problem; not shown in fact; questionable; uncertain; unsettled; doubtful.  [1913 Webster]
"Diligent inquiries into remote and problematical guilt leave a gate wide open to . . . informers."  [1913 Webster]

OXFORD DICTIONARY

problematic, adj. (also problematical)
1 attended by difficulty.
2 doubtful or questionable.
3 Logic enunciating or supporting what is possible but not necessarily true.

Derivative

problematically adv.

Etymology

F probl{eacute}matique or LL problematicus f. Gk problematikos (as PROBLEM)

THESAURUS

problematic

a bit thick, a bit thin, absurd, ambiguous, arguable, at issue, baffling, bewildering, beyond belief, bothering, confounding, confusing, confutable, conjectural, contestable, controversial, controvertible, debatable, deniable, difficult, discomposing, disconcerting, dismaying, disputable, disputed, distracting, disturbing, doubtable, doubted, doubtful, dubious, dubitable, embarrassing, enigmatic, hairy, hard of belief, hard to believe, iffy, implausible, in dispute, in doubt, in dubio, in question, inconceivable, incredible, indecisive, intricate, mistakable, moot, mysterious, mystifying, not deserving belief, open, open to doubt, open to question, open to suspicion, passing belief, perplexing, perturbing, precarious, preposterous, problematical, puzzling, questionable, questioned, refutable, ridiculous, sensitive, speculative, staggering belief, suppositional, suspect, suspicious, tall, thick, thin, touchy, tricky, unbelievable, uncertain, unconvincing, undecided, unearthly, ungodly, unimaginable, unsettled, unthinkable, unworthy of belief, upsetting