dispute
Americanverb (used without object)
-
disputes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
disputed,
past participle, past
-
disputing
present participle
verb (used with object)
-
disputes,
present (3rd person singular)
-
disputed,
past participle, past
-
disputing
present participle
-
to argue or debate about; discuss.
Whether excessive time spent on the internet can be called an addiction is hotly disputed.
-
to argue against; call into question.
Historians dispute this claim, suggesting Raleigh could not possibly have discovered the potato in the places he visited.
-
to quarrel or fight about; contest.
We stopped to watch a puffed-up crow disputing territory with a cat.
-
Archaic. to strive against; oppose.
to dispute an advance of troops.
noun
-
disputes
plural
-
a debate, controversy, or difference of opinion.
Players were elated when the equal pay dispute was finally resolved.
-
a wrangling argument; quarrel.
Some women at the end of the bar were having a noisy dispute about who should be the designated driver.
- Synonyms:
- bickering, squabble, wrangle, altercation, disputation
idioms
verb
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to argue, debate, or quarrel about (something)
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(tr; may take a clause as object) to doubt the validity, etc, of
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(tr) to seek to win; contest for
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(tr) to struggle against; resist
noun
Synonym Usage
See argument.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
disputesimple
-
disputessimple
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have disputedperfect
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has disputedperfect
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am disputingprogressive
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are disputingprogressive
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is disputingprogressive
-
have been disputingperfect progressive
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has been disputingperfect progressive
Past
-
disputedsimple
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had disputedperfect
-
was disputingprogressive
-
were disputingprogressive
-
had been disputingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of dispute
First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English verb disputen, dispuiten, desputen, either from Anglo-French, Old French desputer or directly from Latin disputāre “to argue a point,” equivalent to dis- dis- 1 + putāre “to reckon, consider”; noun derivative of the verb; see putative
Explanation
If kids can't settle their own argument, they may need someone to mediate their dispute, or conflict. You can often tell this is the case if you hear the loud cry, "Mom!" The noun dispute means any conflict or disagreement. The countries were in the middle of a border dispute; both sides claimed the toxic waste dump belonged to the other. As a verb, dispute can mean to quarrel or argue, but it can also mean to take exception to something. If your boasting friend crows because you lost the trivia game to her by 150 points, you may want to dispute the facts. It was only 145 points.
Vocabulary lists containing dispute
The SAT: Language of the Test, List 5
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The New SAT: The Language of the Test
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The ACT: The Language of the Test, List 3
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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:
While obvious differences exist between a shooting war in Iran and a trade dispute with Canada, the lessons are not dissimilar.
From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026
Canada is the U.S.’s second-largest trading partner, behind Mexico and ahead of China, making the escalating dispute particularly consequential for both economies.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 25, 2026
Even an extra one-tenth of a percentage of added inflation resulting from the dispute with Canada could make the Fed’s job harder.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 25, 2026
In an earlier phase of the dispute, Ontario imposed a temporary 25-percent surcharge on electricity exports to three US states.
From Barron's ● Aug. 25, 2026
Hamilton’s distinction between personal and political criticism was designed to change the dispute with Burr from an affair of honor to a political difference of opinion.
From "Founding Brothers: The Revolutionary Generation" by Joseph J. Ellis
Opponents have argued that the process leaves areas more vulnerable to uncontrollable fires, which the charity disputes, but it has identified significant land management changes it plans to make.
From BBC ● Aug. 25, 2026
Harris-Dawson disputes that, saying Raman failed to lead the committee with the urgency needed to combat L.A.’s enduring homelessness crisis.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 23, 2026
Because of confidentiality provisions and the private nature of these disputes, there is plenty we don’t know about how common fights like this one are—or how they’re resolved.
From Slate ● Aug. 20, 2026
If the company upholds its decision, he should then file a complaint with his state’s insurance department and/or consult an attorney who specializes in property-insurance disputes.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 18, 2026
Although they never permitted matters to come to bloodshed, they still fostered these quarrels between them so that those citizens would not unite against them, being busy with their own disputes.
From "The Prince" by Niccolò Machiavelli
Pyongyang, in a Wednesday statement, called the pullback immaterial and disputed the two leaders had recently communicated.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 20, 2026
His organisation, the Greater Kaziranga Land and Human Rights Protection Committee, disputed this, saying police used force against protesters and that Doley was not involved in the confrontation.
From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026
David Wachsman, a spokesperson for World Liberty Financial, disputed the criticism, saying the preliminary approval is “great news for consumer and investor protection advocates and for the American financial services industry.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026
This disputed imbalance could lead to a legal battle, and Arizona has already set aside several million dollars for potential lawsuits.
From Barron's ● Aug. 17, 2026
We skied through small frosty woods and over the hillocks and fields of the disputed valley.
From "The Left Hand of Darkness" by Ursula K. Le Guin
Hims & Hers is disputing the claims and said it would defend itself in court.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 10, 2026
Jolie later pushed back in her own court filings, disputing Pitt’s characterization of Shefler.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 6, 2026
Manifold stated he was “removed without warning and without explanation,” disputing BP’s characterization of his conduct.
From Barron's ● May 27, 2026
The case has garnered the attention of the federal Department of Justice, which filed a brief this month disputing an argument made by the insurers to have the case thrown out.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 16, 2026
There will be lots of disputing among the experts over what is certain and what not; perhaps the heat and duration of dispute could be adapted for the measurement of uncertainty.
From "The Lives of a Cell" by Lewis Thomas
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.
