pick a quarrel

Idioms  

1. Also,. Seek an opportunity to quarrel or argue with someone. For example, I don't want to pick a quarrel with you, or Jason was always in trouble for picking fights. These terms use pick in the sense of “select.” [Mid-1400s]

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Example Sentences

Even if she gets defensive or wants to pick a quarrel with you, you don’t have to engage: “I don’t want to fight about this with you, so let’s drop the subject.”

From Slate

“We didn’t pick a quarrel with them, but when a crime has been committed, especially when chemical weapons have been used in Malaysia, we are duty bound to protect the interest of Malaysians,” Mr. Najib told Parliament, according to Reuters.

From New York Times

"We didn't pick a quarrel with them but when a crime has been committed, especially when chemical weapons have been used in Malaysia, we are duty bound to protect the interest of Malaysians," Najib said.

From Reuters

She is a communist and atheist and one day goes to confession, purely and simply to pick a quarrel with the priest – and this is Morin, an excellent performance from Jean-Paul Belmondo.

From The Guardian

Guests poured from the booths, transformed from one age into another, their faces covered with dominoes, the very act of putting on a mask revoking all their licenses to pick a quarrel with fantasy and horror.

From Literature