squabble
Americanverb (used without object)
-
squabbles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
squabbled,
past participle, past
-
squabbling
present participle
verb (used with object)
-
squabbles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
squabbled,
past participle, past
-
squabbling
present participle
noun
-
squabbles
plural
verb
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
squabblesimple
-
squabblessimple
-
have squabbledperfect
-
has squabbledperfect
-
am squabblingprogressive
-
are squabblingprogressive
-
is squabblingprogressive
-
have been squabblingperfect progressive
-
has been squabblingperfect progressive
Past
-
squabbledsimple
-
had squabbledperfect
-
was squabblingprogressive
-
were squabblingprogressive
-
had been squabblingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of squabble
1595–1605; probably < Scandinavian; compare Swedish dialect skvabbel a quarrel, gossip, Norwegian dialect skvabba to prattle
Explanation
A squabble is a fight but not necessarily a serious one. When we squabble, we have a little argument, probably about something not too important. Do you notice how squabble sounds kind of funny? That's a clue that a squabble is not the most serious kind of argument or fight. A loud, screaming fight would never be called a squabble. A small, silly discussion about something small or trivial is more of a squabble. Friends and family members squabble all the time.
Vocabulary lists containing squabble
The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind
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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:
There was a time when the public picked a team in the Murdoch family’s squabble.
From Salon ● Mar. 14, 2026
This makes Anthropic’s squabble with the Pentagon over the use of its tools even more disturbing and shortsighted.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 8, 2026
And like in any squabble, there will be a winner and a loser.
From MarketWatch ● Jan. 25, 2026
They would raise a glass to that if it happens and leave the politicians to squabble over who fought Scotch's corner the hardest.
From BBC ● Sep. 16, 2025
A squabble would ensue until they all became aware of the watchful eye of Cluny.
From "Redwall" by Brian Jacques
When Curran took the job, his background included more time wearing an earpiece than keeping his ear to the ground in Washington’s budgeting and political squabbles.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 3, 2026
We know this because the Murdochs’ family squabbles spilled into the news, late-night monologues and the figurative streets of social media at the height of their struggles.
From Salon ● Mar. 14, 2026
Pondering the loss of a spouse tends to put money squabbles in perspective.
From MarketWatch ● Mar. 5, 2026
She continued: "When you take out a major leader, there's a detonation of a struggle to take control in that vacuum. So, you'll see these squabbles for power in different parts of the country."
From BBC ● Feb. 24, 2026
I should be used to the fact that these squabbles are daily occurrences, but I’m not and never will be as long as I’m the subject of nearly every discussion.
From "The Diary of a Young Girl" by Anne Frank
The two sides had squabbled over how Chey’s fortune should be split with Roh.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
O'Donnell and Trump have squabbled publicly and repeatedly since her first stint as a co-host on ABC's "The View."
From Salon ● Mar. 12, 2025
And as Leclerc then squabbled with the recovering Sainz, and the Ferraris then ran into tyre trouble before Mercedes and Verstappen, Russell stretched out his lead to take control of the race.
From BBC ● Nov. 24, 2024
Mismanagement marred the program early on as Metro squabbled over whether RideCo provided it adequate maintenance records.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 14, 2023
Religious leaders squabbled and left, and money grew tight.
From "The Girl Who Drew Butterflies: How Maria Merian's Art Changed Science" by Joyce Sidman
She hands out camping chairs, decides when it is safe to use the escalator, and de-escalates spats between people squabbling over a patch of floor.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 3, 2026
An issue like that can intensify the squabbling when a death occurs in the family.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 30, 2026
"He's looking after us while me and Jude are squabbling with each other," Rogers said.
From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026
Cue a montage of the two of them squabbling that, alas, sets the tone for this movie, which drones much more often than it soars.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 5, 2026
He didn’t ask “Where’d you learn that?” and so Josie didn’t have to make up any stories that erased the dirty, squabbling children she’d known at her old neighborhood day care.
From "The School for Whatnots" by Margaret Peterson Haddix
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.
