bone of contention

American  

noun

1. a subject, cause, or focal point of a dispute.

   The terms of the old man's will were a bone of contention to his survivors.

---

bone of contention British  

noun

1. the grounds or subject of a dispute

---

bone of contention Idioms  

1. Main issue of a disagreement; something to quarrel about. For example, Grandfather's will was a bone of contention for the whole family. This expression alludes to two dogs fighting (contending) over a single bone. In slightly different guise, bone of dissension, it was used figuratively in the 16th century and took its present form in the early 1700s.

---

Etymology

Origin of bone of contention

First recorded in 1705–15

Example Sentences

Arguably the biggest, and certainly the most long-standing, bone of contention is nuclear.

From BBC • Apr. 10, 2026

One bone of contention: proposed studio units that he and some other local business owners say their workers neither want nor need.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 26, 2026

The other bone of contention, India’s soaring purchases of discounted Russian oil, may resolve itself organically, says Amitendu Palit, senior research fellow at the Institute of South Asian Studies in Singapore.

From Barron's • Feb. 19, 2026

The weakness has been a major bone of contention in trade relations with the U.S.

From MarketWatch • Feb. 9, 2026

My suitcase was a bone of contention between Tessie and me.

From "Middlesex: A Novel" by Jeffrey Eugenides