- controversy
- nounADJECTIVE▪ considerable, great, major▪ bitter, fierce (esp. BrE), heated, intense, raging▪ growing▪ fresh, further, new, renewed▪ current, recent▪ continued, continuing, long-standing, ongoing▪ public▪ academic, critical, scholarly (esp. BrE)▪ ethical, legal, political, scientific▪ religious, theologicalVERB + CONTROVERSY▪ arouse, cause, create, engender, excite (esp. BrE), generate, give rise to▪
What they are doing is bound to stir up controversy.
▪ fuel, ignite, provoke, spark, spark off, stir, stir up, trigger▪ be dogged by (esp. BrE), be marked by, be surrounded by▪This year's championships have been marked by controversy.
▪ avoid, shy away from▪The president seemed anxious to avoid controversy about these appointments.
▪ end, quell, resolve, settle▪Public funding could resolve the controversy surrounding campaign finance.
▪ run into (BrE)▪The network ran into controversy over claims of faked documentary footage.
▪ be no stranger to▪Ms Benjamin, who is no stranger to controversy herself, said the scandal could have serious repercussions.
▪ court▪The singer deliberately courts controversy with his lyrics.
CONTROVERSY + VERB▪ arise, break out, erupt▪A fierce controversy has broken out over the issue.
▪ rage▪Controversy is raging over the route of the new road.
▪ exist▪Controversy exists as to how safe these drugs are.
▪ continue, persist▪Today, the controversy continues over whether Shakespeare wrote all his plays.
▪ centre/center on sth▪The controversy centred/centered on the issue of compensation for the victims.
▪ surround sth▪Much controversy surrounds the new exam.
PREPOSITION▪ amid controversy▪He has resigned amid continuing controversy over his expense claims.
▪ controversy about, controversy concerning, controversy over▪There has been a lot of controversy over the use of these drugs.
▪ controversy among▪controversy among historians
▪ controversy between▪controversy between the two leaders
▪ controversy surrounding▪the bitter controversy surrounding the introduction of the new regulations
▪ controversy with▪her long-running controversy with fellow academics
PHRASES▪ a matter of controversy, a source of controversy, a subject of controversy▪ a firestorm of controversy (AmE), a storm of controversy▪The book raised a storm of controversy.
Collocations dictionary. 2013.
