Moot point

Question:

Could you clarify the proper use of the word moot? I believe that it is often misused in the expression moot point.

Answer:

Most sources agree that there are three uses for the adjective moot.

The word moot means debatable and is most often seen in the expression moot point. However, in doing a quick Internet search to gauge how this expression is interpreted, I found that most people think a moot point is a point that is no longer worth debating when traditionally it means the opposite. In fact, the Canadian Oxford Dictionary gives both meanings for moot point.

According to Oxford's Guide to Canadian English Usage, another sense of moot originally came from the American legal system and has made its way into everyday language. It now means academic or of no practical importance.

And last, in a strictly legal sense, the word means hypothetical (as in moot court, a simulation trial).

Because moot point frequently means that something is no longer worth debating, to use it in the opposite sense (i.e. open to argument) would confuse most people.