hairsplitting

American  

[hair-split-ing] / ˈhɛərˌsplɪt ɪŋ /

noun

1. the making of unnecessarily fine distinctions.

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adjective

1. characterized by such distinctions.

   the hairsplitting arguments of a political debate.

   Synonyms:

   captious, niggling, quibbling

hairsplitting British  

/ ˈhɛəˌsplɪtɪŋ /

noun

1. the making of petty distinctions

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adjective

1. occupied with or based on petty distinctions

Other Word Forms

• hairsplitter noun

Etymology

Origin of hairsplitting

First recorded in 1820–30; hair + splitting

Example Sentences

But Oedipus is in no mood for academic hairsplitting.

From Los Angeles Times • Nov. 13, 2025

In a June 5 interview with The Associated Press, the attorney general gave a hairsplitting description of his role in directing the law enforcement actions.

From New York Times • Jun. 21, 2020

But such hairsplitting is far beyond the remit of Lindelof and Cuse, who have crafted “The Hunt” less as a polemic than as an infantile, pox-on-both-your-houses rant.

From Washington Post • Mar. 11, 2020

They generally involve rephrasing the accusation, then issuing a very narrowly-crafted and hairsplitting denial, while avoiding the central claim.

From Salon • Nov. 21, 2019

But, to avoid hairsplitting, what we call "modern" English literature may be said to date from about 1885.

From Modern British Poetry by Untermeyer, Louis