open question

noun

1. a matter which is undecided
2. a question that cannot be answered with a yes or no but requires a developed answer

Idioms and Phrases

An unresolved issue, one that has not been finally determined. For example, Whether the town should pave all the unpaved roads remains an open question . In the mid-1800s this term acquired a specific meaning in the British Parliament, that is, “an issue on which members may vote independently, without respect to their party affiliation.”

Example Sentences

What ISIS can do with the drone, assuming one is in their hands, is an open question.

From The Daily Beast

But the question of how it will be interpreted, like so much else in Luhansk, remains an open question.

From The Daily Beast

It is an open question what responsibilities artists bear when turning the public mind to these matters.

From The Daily Beast

But how long that support will last is an open question, given the civilian casualties that are mounting from this Gaza war.

From The Daily Beast

Whether Sarkozy can throw his hat in the ring then is an open question.

From The Daily Beast

His refusal to let unity remain an open question deprived them at once of any seriousness.

From Project Gutenberg

But whether Dafydd Dafis sang much as he worked, or worked a little as he sang, remained an open question.

From Project Gutenberg

While the "where to go" was thus settled, the "when to go" remained an open question for many months to come.

From Project Gutenberg

Whether, then, Weishaupt was directly inspired by Mendelssohn or any other Jew must remain for the present an open question.

From Project Gutenberg

Whether it was by this sect that the Templars were indoctrinated must remain an open question.

From Project Gutenberg