litigious
Americanadjective
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of or relating to litigation.
-
excessively or readily inclined to litigate.
a litigious person.
-
inclined to dispute or disagree; argumentative.
- Synonyms:
- quarrelsome , disputatious , contentious
adjective
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excessively ready to go to law
-
of or relating to litigation
-
inclined to dispute or disagree
Usage
What does litigious mean? Litigious is an adjective that’s used to describe a person or organization that is prone to suing other people or companies.It typically implies that such lawsuits are frivolous or excessive.The related verb litigate means to engage in a legal proceeding, such as a lawsuit. It can mean to bring a lawsuit or to contest one.Litigate can also be used in a somewhat figurative or general way meaning to intensely dispute or argue something, as if one were a lawyer in a courtroom setting, as in It’s just a minor issue—we don’t have to litigate it over and over again. In the same way, litigious can also be used to describe someone who’s prone to arguing. A close synonym is argumentative.The tendency to be litigious is called litigiousness.Less commonly, litigious can also be used to describe anything involving litigation.Example: The megacorporation is known for being litigious—constantly firing off lawsuits as a first resort.
Other Word Forms
- litigiosity noun
- litigiously adverb
- litigiousness noun
- nonlitigious adjective
- nonlitigiously adverb
- nonlitigiousness noun
- unlitigious adjective
- unlitigiously adverb
- unlitigiousness noun
Etymology
Origin of litigious
1350–1400; Middle English < Latin lītigiōsus contentious, equivalent to lītigi ( um ) a quarrel ( litigant, -ium ) + -ōsus -ous
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Not coincidentally, the era was also passionately and inexhaustibly litigious.
You are not responsible for the executor’s mismanagement of your father’s estate and you are not responsible for the legal fees incurred by your sister’s increasingly litigious behavior.
From MarketWatch
Whereas America’s litigious culture forces bona fide compliance with national and international law, Chinese companies are rife with fraud and theatrics.
The Grammy-winning rapper, in the midst of promoting her sophomore album, “Am I the Drama?,” and after securing a victory over a litigious security guard, is pregnant with her fourth child.
From Los Angeles Times
It’s a point of pride that no one sued to overturn the commission’s work, a rarity in the highly litigious field of redistricting.
From Los Angeles Times
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
