haggle
verb (used without object)
to bargain in a petty, quibbling, and often contentious manner.
had been haggling
-
past perfect progressiveof haggle.past perfect progressive
Used to describe an action that was ongoing continuously in the past up until another past event interrupted it.
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.
It had been haggling for months over details with the RMI, which had called on Washington to better address the legacy of nuclear testing there in the 1940s and 1950s.
From Reuters ● Oct. 16, 2023
But prosecutors and Hensel’s defense attorney, Leonard Levine, had been haggling over the terms of a plea deal for months.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 6, 2023
The commissioners left their last in-person meetings in early January gridlocked and unable to produce the unanimous consensus needed to move forward with a 12-team proposal they had been haggling over since June.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 18, 2022
He had been haggling with the club for months over the length of a new contract.
From New York Times ● Jun. 18, 2021
And they mounted up and up, bidding against one another good-humoredly and naming prices as though they had been haggling over Nana at an auction.
From Four Short Stories By Emile Zola by Émile Zola
