bicker
1 Americanverb (used without object)
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bickers,
present (3rd person singular)
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bickered,
past participle, past
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bickering
present participle
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to engage in petulant or peevish argument; wrangle.
The two were always bickering.
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Literary. to rush or make a rushing sound, as water.
We first heard and then saw the stream bickering down the valley.
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The sun bickered through the trees.
noun
noun
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any wooden dish or bowl, especially a wooden porridge bowl.
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Obsolete. a wooden drinking cup.
verb
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to argue over petty matters; squabble
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poetic
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(esp of a stream) to run quickly
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to flicker; glitter
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noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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bickersimple
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bickerssimple
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have bickeredperfect
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has bickeredperfect
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am bickeringprogressive
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are bickeringprogressive
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is bickeringprogressive
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have been bickeringperfect progressive
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has been bickeringperfect progressive
Past
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bickeredsimple
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had bickeredperfect
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was bickeringprogressive
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were bickeringprogressive
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had been bickeringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of bicker1
First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English bikeren; origin unknown
Origin of bicker2
1300–50; Middle English biker beaker
Explanation
When you bicker, you argue in a petty way, like two kids squabbling in the backseat on a long car trip, or politicians taking cheap shots at each other but avoiding discussion of important issues. It's impossible to bicker in a dignified way, as the word always suggests pettiness and an unpleasant experience for anyone within earshot. If, for instance, you've listened for years to your ill-tempered aunt from Boise bicker with your uncle from Dubuque over how the Thanksgiving turkey should be carved, you might want to book a trip to Tierra del Fuego and avoid the holiday altogether.
Vocabulary lists containing bicker
The Outsiders
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "B"
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Nothing But the Truth
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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.
See Examples For:
These days, pastel and fluorescent birds groom, preen and bicker in enclosures behind the home.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 4, 2026
But they can still take steps to reduce tension when older couples bicker about money.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 5, 2026
"While Americans bicker, our rivals are studying David's every move," billionaire Salesforce CEO Marc Benioff chimed in.
From Barron's ● Dec. 24, 2025
The contemporary, Earthly versions of the characters, played by Betty Buckley and Barry Primus at the start of their film, bicker on their way to their daughter’s gender reveal party.
From Salon ● Nov. 27, 2025
Sheed stopped at the statue base and watched the sisters bicker as usual.
From "The Last Last-Day-of-Summer" by Lamar Giles
We’re sure they have the same bickers and feuds we all have, too, and that’s comforting.
From Salon ● Sep. 29, 2024
A couple forms, bickers, ends — and may or may not be reborn on different terms.
From New York Times ● Oct. 27, 2022
The Palace of Westminster sits in a state of dangerous decay, with chunks of masonry tumbling off its walls, as Parliament bickers over a renovation that could take decades and cost more than $20 billion.
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 27, 2022
Other leagues compromise, grow and prosper while baseball bickers and battles and points its fingers at each other on a path toward national irrelevancy.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 1, 2022
Grass cools the earth, but it also bickers with me over water.
From "Wishtree" by Katherine Applegate
The Emiratis looked on as the Washington crowd bickered.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 19, 2026
That same month, Trump made an unusual visit to the construction site during which the two men, clad in hard hats, bickered over the price tag for the makeover.
From Barron's ● Jan. 12, 2026
My grandmother and her sister bickered over everything their whole lives, so I think their mother knew better than to leave it to them to decide things.
From MarketWatch ● Nov. 21, 2025
They raised their kids in the Bowl and sometimes bickered over politics and annoyances, as any proper family does.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 13, 2025
They bickered amicably about the merits of living in the city until the tram stopped and Ms. Bethune herded them off.
From "Shooting Kabul" by N. H. Senzai
It was far from certain the country would respond as it did after 9/11, for there was plenty of the usual political bickering going on in the nation’s capital at the time.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 8, 2026
So it becomes one more point of bickering.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 17, 2026
One way a court can handle rumors of interpersonal bickering is to stop behaving badly in public sessions.
From Slate ● Jul. 2, 2026
Once such disdain for a settlement becomes possible, the SEC’s ability to set a clear standard for future conduct is greatly compromised, and continuing bickering becomes likely after any settlement.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 17, 2026
They were bickering about something, which made it easier to pretend that everything was normal.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
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.
