quibbling

[ kwib-ling ]

/ ˈkwɪb lɪŋ /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR quibbling ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

characterized by or consisting of quibbles; carping; niggling: quibbling debates.

noun

the act of a person who quibbles.

an instance of quibbling: a relationship marked by frequent quibblings.

Content related to quibbling

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Words related to quibbling

complaining, niggling, griping, fault-finding, hairsplitting, nit-picking, captious, elusive, evasive, sophistic, casuistic, prevaricative, sophistical

Words nearby quibbling

qui nhon, qui nhong, qui transtulit sustinet, qui vive, quibble, quibbling, quibdó, quiberon, quiche, quiche lorraine, quichua

Origin of quibbling

First recorded in 1650–60; quibble + -ing², -ing¹

OTHER WORDS FROM quibbling

quib·bling·ly, adverbun·quib·bling, adjective

Definition for quibbling (2 of 2)

quibble

[ kwib-uhl ]

/ ˈkwɪb əl /

noun

an instance of the use of ambiguous, prevaricating, or irrelevant language or arguments to evade a point at issue.

the general use of such arguments.

petty or carping criticism; a minor objection.

verb (used without object), quib·bled, quib·bling.

to equivocate.

to carp; cavil.

Origin of quibble

1605–15; perhaps derivative (cf. -le) of quib gibe, apparently akin to quip

SYNONYMS FOR quibble

1 evasion, equivocation, sophism, shift, ambiguity.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR quibble ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM quibble

quib·bler, nounout·quib·ble, verb (used with object), out·quib·bled, out·quib·bling.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for quibbling

Quibbling over dates aside, 19th century Americans did insistently observe a day of remembrance.
The Real Memorial Day: Oliver Wendell Holmes's Salute To A Momentous American Anniversary|Malcolm Jones|May 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
If Shakespeare had graduated at Oxford, he might have been a quibbling attorney, or a hypocritical parson.
The Works of Robert G. Ingersoll, Vol. 3 (of 12)|Robert G. Ingersoll
But you see that I have not stooped to any quibbling, or begging either.
Devil Stories|Various
If Shakespeare had graduated at Oxford, he might have been a quibbling attorney or a hypocritical parson.
Our American Holidays: Lincoln's Birthday|Various

They cannot be altogether cheated out of their rights by sophisms and quibbling.
The American Quarterly Review, No. 17, March 1831|Various
The vulgar acquired the quibbling method of the schools, and employed it to outwit the less cunning.
History of the Jews, Vol. V (of 6)|Heinrich Graetz

British Dictionary definitions for quibbling

quibble

/ (ˈkwɪbəl) /

verb (intr)

to make trivial objections; prevaricate

archaic to play on words; pun

noun

a trivial objection or equivocation, esp one used to avoid an issue

archaic a pun

Derived forms of quibble

quibbler, nounquibbling, adjective, nounquibblingly, adverb

Word Origin for quibble

C17: probably from obsolete quib, perhaps from Latin quibus (from quī who, which), as used in legal documents, with reference to their obscure phraseology

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012