Etymologically
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problematic

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Pronunciation

  • IPA: /ˌpɹɒb.ləˈmæt.ɪk/ (UK); /ˌpɹɑ.bləˈmæt.ɪk/ (US)[1]

Etymology

It is borrowed from Middle French problématique,[2][3] from Late Latin problēmaticus,[2][3][4] from Ancient Greek προβληματικός (problēmatikós, “relating to a problem”),[2][3] from πρόβλημα (próblēma) (see problem).[2][4]

Earliest recorded meaning

Doubtful, questionable, uncertain: about 1600 in Etymonline, 1609 in the OED, of the nature of a problem.[2][5] Problematical is older, from the 1560s.[2]

Semantic evolution

In logic, stating what is possible but not necessarily true, it is from the 1610s.[2][5] In chess it relates to chess problems, from 1890.[5] The noun, an area of difficulty, is a sociological use from 1957,[5] and Etymonline links the modern sense, causing difficulty, to it.[2]

Timeline

  • 1560s – problematical.[2]
  • 1609 – problematic.[5]
  • 1610 – in logic.[5]
  • 1957 – a problematic (noun).[5]

Modern meaning

Adjective

  1. Causing a problem or difficulty; hard to deal with.
  2. Open to doubt; questionable or unresolved.
  3. (logic, obsolete) Asserting what is possible but not certain.

Word family

  • problematically
  • nonproblematic
  • unproblematic

References

  1. ^ Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ a b Pearsall, Judy, ed. (1998), The New Oxford Dictionary of English, Oxford: Clarendon Press
  5. ^ a b c d e f g Simpson, J. A.; Weiner, E. S. C., eds. (1989), The Oxford English Dictionary, 2nd ed., Oxford: Clarendon Press