as in to complain
to make often peevish criticisms or objections about matters that are minor, unimportant, or irrelevant
caviled for hours about a single sentence
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in quibble
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Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of cavil
Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 10 May 2021
However, the actual interiors of this four-bedroom home are nothing to cavil at.
—Kelly Corbett, House Beautiful, 7 Oct. 2020
Noun
Naysayers often cavil that California’s economic growth depends almost entirely on Silicon Valley and the capital gains income of its wealthiest residents, but its primacy in high technology encompasses fields outside Northern California, such as biotech.
—Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 10 May 2021
However, the actual interiors of this four-bedroom home are nothing to cavil at.
—Kelly Corbett, House Beautiful, 7 Oct. 2020
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cavil
Verb
-
In that appearance, Thilly moonwalked across the floor and performed a backspin before using his allotted five minutes to complain about rising taxes, according to CBS News New York.—
Michael Dorgan,
FOXNews.com,
25 Oct. 2025
-
Another woman, 59, complained of back pain, per the outlets.—
Colson Thayer,
PEOPLE,
24 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
But Swenson does have a quibble.—
Steve Fryer,
Oc Register,
17 Oct. 2025
-
Earlier, Banks and I had spoken some about mutual quibbles with the racial politics in One Battle After Another—a divisive subject at this hootenanny.—
Brittany Allen,
Literary Hub,
9 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Ultimately, though, Braun’s priority through all the number-nitpicking negotiations was to stay in Denver.—
Bennett Durando,
Denver Post,
21 Oct. 2025
-
Just keep an eye on the run defense In a dominating win like Sunday’s, looking for any negatives is nitpicking, but the Cowboys’ run defense struggles are worth highlighting.—
Nick Harris,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
5 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
While still unconfirmed, we’re told that the film sees Louise, the alcoholic mother of Mike (Hechinger) and Tommy, take off after a quarrel with her husband Lester — walking with her dog to the home of her brother Frank, quite a few miles away.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
14 Oct. 2025
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Hip-Hop has equally thrived on legendary quarrels and strong relationships.—
Armon Sadler,
VIBE.com,
6 Oct. 2025
Verb
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But practically speaking, this vodka mixes easily and well without having to fuss too much.—
Jeff Burkhart,
Mercury News,
15 Oct. 2025
-
By re-creating the relevant latent representations, and not the missing pixels of earlier systems, the model learns to see the cars on the road and not fuss about the leaves on the trees.—
Quanta Magazine,
Quanta Magazine,
3 Oct. 2025
Noun
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Yangwang doesn’t want to leave any doubts about the U9’s capabilities.—
Bryan Hood,
Robb Report,
22 Oct. 2025
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Many journalists, authors, and investigators have voiced doubts about these convictions, believing that the real Monster of Florence was never caught.—
Randall Colburn,
Entertainment Weekly,
22 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Shannon moans right about the time Jenn walks out to see what the commotion is all about.—
Peter Larsen,
Oc Register,
10 Oct. 2025
-
There’s something moaning in the background.—
Brian Hiatt,
Rolling Stone,
10 Oct. 2025
Noun
-
Arenas has since said the dispute started over a game of bourré.—
Andrew Greif,
NBC news,
24 Oct. 2025
-
The dispute has largely remained peaceful so far.—
Omar S Mahmood,
Time,
24 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Cavil.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cavil. Accessed 28 Oct. 2025.
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