altercation

noun

al·​ter·​ca·​tion ˌȯl-tər-ˈkā-shən 

: a noisy, heated, angry dispute

He got into several altercations with his boss.

also : noisy controversy

Synonyms

• argle-bargle [chiefly British]
• argument
• argy-bargy [chiefly British]
• battle royal
• bicker
• brawl
• contretemps
• controversy
• cross fire
• disagreement
• dispute
• donnybrook
• falling-out
• fight
• hassle
• imbroglio
• kickup
• misunderstanding
• quarrel
• rhubarb
• row
• scrap
• set-to
• spat
• squabble
• tiff
• wrangle

Choose the Right Synonym for altercation

quarrel, wrangle, altercation, squabble mean a noisy dispute usually marked by anger.

quarrel implies heated verbal contention, stressing strained or severed relations which may persist beyond the contention.

a quarrel nearly destroyed the relationship

wrangle suggests undignified and often futile disputation with a noisy insistence on differing opinions.

wrangle interminably about small issues

altercation implies fighting with words as the chief weapon, although it may also connote blows.

a loud public altercation

squabble stresses childish and unseemly dispute over petty matters, but it need not imply bitterness or anger.

a brief squabble over what to do next

Examples of altercation in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The original criminal complaint stated Miu had brandished a knife when two females confronted him before a physical altercation broke out. —Andy Rose, CNN, 12 Apr. 2024

After the meeting, Kolb stopped short of calling the exchange an altercation. —Krista Johnson, The Courier-Journal, 11 Apr. 2024

City Council will discuss Shortly after 3:30 a.m. Saturday at Martini Bar in CityPlace Doral, George Alejandro Castellanos, a 23-year-old security guard, son, brother and father, went to deescalate an altercation involving two men when, police say, he was shot and killed by one of them, Jamal Wood. —David J. Neal, Miami Herald, 10 Apr. 2024

That night, a person alerted police that a man and a woman were involved in a physical altercation, according to a report from the Exposition Park Department of Public Safety. —Jack Harris, Los Angeles Times, 9 Apr. 2024

The charges stemmed from a March 2023 altercation with his then-girlfriend, Grace Jabbari, in a for-hire SUV in Manhattan. —Aaron Katersky, ABC News, 8 Apr. 2024

Majors was found guilty of one count of misdemeanor assault in the third degree and one count of harassment in December 2023, stemming from a March 2023 altercation with his then-girlfriend Grace Jabbari in New York City. —Rivea Ruff, Essence, 8 Apr. 2024

Officers were told of the stabbing just before 4:25 p.m. after an altercation broke out between at least two men on Traction Avenue and Colfax Street in the Old North Sacramento neighborhood, according to archived radio dispatches. —Ishani Desai, Sacramento Bee, 5 Apr. 2024

In February, an altercation between two groups of diners at an Indianapolis Waffle House may have precipitated gunfire that killed one person and injured five others, authorities said. —Doha Madani, NBC News, 1 Apr. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English altercacioun, borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French altercacion, borrowed from Latin altercātiōn-, altercātiō, from altercārī, altercāre "to dispute vehemently, wrangle" + -tiōn-, -tiō, suffix of verbal action — more at altercate

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

altercation

noun

al·​ter·​ca·​tion ˌȯl-tər-ˈkā-shən 

: a noisy or angry dispute