bickering

1 of 3

noun

bick·​er·​ing ˈbi-k(ə-)riŋ 

: petty and petulant quarreling especially when prolonged or habitual

… said his own bosses, through their persistent bickering, had made his job practically impossible.

—Ronald Scott

also, bickerings plural : instances of such quarreling

was tired of listening to their endless bickerings

bickering

2 of 3

adjective

: engaging in or characterized by petty and petulant quarreling

a bickering couple

bickering politicians

bickering

3 of 3

present participle of bicker entry 2

Examples of bickering in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Noun

Ultron is the Oscar to Vision’s Felix, and their odd-couple bickering is the one truly pleasurable aspect of VisionQuest — Spader can do this kind of side-of-the-mouth snark in his sleep, and Bettany solidly lobs back the screwballs he gets served. — David Fear, Rolling Stone, 12 Oct. 2026

All the women piled into Louisa’s company car are off scrambling for safety in this episode, which leads to some quality bickering between Louisa and Shirley that only their mutual annoyance with Moira can silence. — Scott Tobias, Vulture, 7 Oct. 2026

Adjective

Hulu 'The Wrecking Crew' Dave Bautista and Jason Momoa are believable brothers – and have quite the bickering bromance in this fun action flick. — Brian Truitt, USA Today, 13 Feb. 2026

Johnny and Ben are usually depicted as bickering surrogate brothers, the hotheaded youngster and the curmudgeonly elder; Susan is a pragmatic force, with Reed often lost in his own world. — David Sims, The Atlantic, 25 July 2025

Word History

First Known Use

Noun

1573, in the meaning defined above

Adjective

1811, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for bickering

• flickering
• snickering