tiff
Americannoun
-
a slight or petty quarrel.
- Synonyms:
- difference, misunderstanding, scrap, spat
-
a slight fit of annoyance, bad mood, or the like.
verb (used without object)
-
to have a petty quarrel.
-
to be in a tiff.
noun
-
a petty quarrel
-
a fit of ill humour
verb
noun
Etymology
Origin of tiff
First recorded in 1720–30; origin uncertain
Explanation
A tiff is a minor, relatively unimportant argument or fight. A tiff with your brother might start over the subject of whose turn it is to take out the trash. It's no fun to have a tiff with someone, but it's usually resolved or forgotten easily. When you have a tiff with a friend, it's inevitably a squabble over some silly topic, and if you bicker with your boyfriend, you can call it a "lovers' tiff." In the 1700s, a tiff was an "outburst of temper," from an unknown source. Some word experts suggest the word echoes the sound of a "puff of air or gas."
Vocabulary lists containing tiff
The Catcher in the Rye
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Never Let Me Go
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Peter Pan
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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.
Perhaps most amusing is Mr. Booker’s tiff with Conan O’Brien, who made a joke about the city of Newark.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 6, 2026
The Australian government has denied the timing of the decision was related to the trade tiff, saying a decade-long department review found the US had improved beef safety measures.
From BBC • Jul. 23, 2025
The women get into a small tiff, reminiscent of moments in “Sex and the City” when Carrie felt more understood by her best friend than she wanted to admit.
From Salon • Jul. 15, 2025
Back in 2019, Trump’s call caused a brief diplomatic tiff with Denmark, under whose sovereignty the vast island falls.
From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 23, 2024
Apparently we are not quite over our little tiff of last night.
From "Landscape with Invisible Hand" by M.T. Anderson
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.
