argumentative

adjective

ar·​gu·​men·​ta·​tive ˌär-gyə-ˈmen-tə-tiv 

variants or less commonly argumentive

ˌär-gyə-ˈmen-tiv 

1

: given to argument : tending to argue : having or showing a tendency to disagree or argue with other people in an angry way : disputatious

He became argumentative when confronted with the allegation.

an argumentative temperament

… had been a pigheaded, argumentative, irascible, and unlikable man …

—Colleen McCullough

2

: consisting of or characterized by argument

argumentative discourse

aired their opinions in an argumentative way

argumentatively adverb

Synonyms of argumentative

• controversial
• contentious
• polemical
• aggressive
• stubborn

Examples of argumentative in a Sentence

He became more argumentative during the debate.

he's too argumentative to be part of a project in which teamwork is critical

Recent Examples on the Web

Be smart and steer clear of controversial topics that will be argumentative. —Georgia Nicols, Denver Post, 24 Oct. 2025

There is no place for violence for these particular types of minor, or even just argumentative, disputes. —Kelli Arseneau, jsonline.com, 9 Oct. 2025

That conversation also became increasingly argumentative. —Sarah Fortinsky, The Hill, 8 Oct. 2025

His orations of statistics, stories, and argumentative persuasion at colleges were energetic, frictious, and necessary to unshackle us from grievance and tribalism. —Alex Rosado, MSNBC Newsweek, 11 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

see argue

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for argumentative

• representative
• augmentative
• fermentative
• presentative
• preventative
• tentative
• unrepresentative

Kids Definition

argumentative

adjective

ar·​gu·​men·​ta·​tive ˌär-gyə-ˈment-ət-iv 

: marked by or given to argument : quarrelsome

argumentatively adverb