as in nitpicking
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in ambiguity
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
1
as in complaining
to make often peevish criticisms or objections about matters that are minor, unimportant, or irrelevant
he spent the entire evening quibbling about the historical inaccuracies in the television series on World War II
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in bickering
to express different opinions about something often angrily
don't quibble over who gets to sit in front
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for quibbling
Noun
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This ambiguity will continue to stifle innovation and will leave banks uncertain about how to proceed, or whether they are permitted to proceed at all.—
Gene A. Grant II,
Forbes,
12 Mar. 2025 -
A lot of them also indicate a psychotic break, introducing an element of ambiguity that’s true to life and also smart for an independent filmmaker without a huge budget for alien effects.—
Katie Rife,
IndieWire,
12 Mar. 2025
Verb
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The Buccaneers started complaining to the officials about fouls.—
CJ Moore,
The Athletic,
8 Jan. 2025
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That first-round pick became Merriman (although, the Giants aren't complaining).—
Ryan Morik,
Fox News,
8 Jan. 2025
Verb
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The sellers are Lydia (Lisa Kudrow) and Paul (Ray Romano), bickering empty nesters saddled with financial woes and a dark secret.—
Kelly Lawler,
USA TODAY,
13 Dec. 2024
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Right out of the gate, the brothers are in a contentious mood, needling each other with elbows and bickering like little siblings.—
Daniel Kreps,
Rolling Stone,
13 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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There were also subtle ‘60s influences in sweet mary jane shoes and boxy silhouettes.—
Rhonda Richford,
WWD,
14 Mar. 2025
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Struggling to read greens by consistently missing left or right is aided by digital green readers that retrain your brain to read the subtle undulations of the green.—
BestReviews,
Chicago Tribune,
14 Mar. 2025
Verb
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Adnan often finds himself at the center of the theatrics — from arguing with Brian about ego to suggesting Veah is an untrustworthy partner after Sunny accused her of cheating.—
Abigail Adams,
People.com,
6 Jan. 2025
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In late 2022, Festa led an effort with other towers and the towing association to get the DMV to increase towing rates, arguing at a DMV hearing that expenses on everything from truck insurance to workers’ compensation had gone up.—
Dave Altimari,
ProPublica,
5 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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Choosing the right one can make the difference between a balanced, nuanced drink and one that falls flat.—
Emily Price,
Forbes,
19 Mar. 2025
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Parents, not lawmakers, should determine when their children tackle nuanced topics.—
Justin Kuk,
Baltimore Sun,
18 Mar. 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Quibbling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/quibbling. Accessed 26 Mar. 2025.
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