bickering

noun bick·er·ing \ ˈbi-k(ə-)riŋ \

Definition of bickering

: 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, plural : instances of such quarreling

was tired of listening to their endless bickerings

Recent Examples of bickering from the Web

Today’s ongoing bickering between Seoul and Tokyo reeks of interwar politics at its worst; leaders who want to live in a postwar order need to rise above such petty grievances.

— nicholas eberstadt, National Review, "To Neutralize the North Korean Threat, America Must First Understand the North Korean Regime," 11 Sep. 2017
Real Madrid stars Marcelo and Luka Modric were caught bickering by television cameras, as the pair unleashed their frustrations during their shock 2-1 loss to Girona on Sunday.

— SI.com, "Real Madrid Stars Marcelo and Luka Modric Show Their Passion on the Pitch as Real Lose Key Ground," 31 Oct. 2017
There was bickering and disagreement between the coaches, and Hall was viewed as the kind of coach who could pull this together and try to get to the finish line in one piece.

— john canzano, OregonLive.com, "Canzano: Five candidates Oregon State will want to interview for its football job," 11 Oct. 2017
The unfettered bickering and name-calling between Trump and Kim is unsettling to the entire world.

— dahleen glanton, chicagotribune.com, "In age of nuclear fear, time to stop taunting like children," 25 Sep. 2017
Yet the government must do a better job of tackling the ethnic divisions and partisan bickering that hamper anticorruption efforts.

— parwiz kawa and shafi sharifi, WSJ, "Why Afghans Are Hopeful About Trump’s New Strategy," 21 Sep. 2017
At this point, given the constant bickering and manipulation in Team Human, who's to say the White Walkers shouldn't win?

— matt miller, Esquire, "The 10 Best Game of Thrones Theories to Consume Fans Until Season Eight," 6 Sep. 2017
After partisan bickering left Illinois without a full budget for more than two years, lawmakers on both sides of the aisle were looking for a win — and a way to avoid blame should schools eventually have to close their doors.

— rick pearson, chicagotribune.com, "Rauner signs major school funding bill into law," 31 Aug. 2017
That said, some prices have skyrocketed and choices have narrowed in many markets, in part because of political bickering over the health law.

— tom murphy, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Obamacare enrollment starts today: Here’s what to look for," 1 Nov. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'bickering.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

First Known Use of bickering

1573

bickering

adjective

Definition of bickering

: engaging in or characterized by petty and petulant quarreling

a bickering couple

bickering politicians

First Known Use of bickering

1811

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