variants
or cavilling
as in critical
given to making or expressing unfavorable judgments about things
a caviling theater critic who has yet to see a play she likes
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
variants
or cavilling
as in complaining
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
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for caviling
Adjective
-
Three residents died at the scene, while five more were hospitalized with critical injuries, FDNY officials said.—
Colin Mixson,
New York Daily News,
5 May 2026 -
As Mercury squares Pluto, feedback or a conversation may feel more intense or critical than expected.—
Tarot.com,
Hartford Courant,
5 May 2026
Verb
-
The back and forth over redistricting have set off a lot of finger pointing, with Republicans complaining when Democrats commit partisan gerrymandering and Democrats complain when Republicans do it.—
Jim DeFede,
CBS News,
3 May 2026
-
This filling treat will not have anyone complaining about where dinner might be.—
Jenna Sims,
Southern Living,
1 May 2026
Adjective
-
So much of the new sobriety flex is anathema to the captious alcoholics of 12-step groups.—
Virginia Heffernan,
Wired,
19 Apr. 2022
-
That a right-wing party traditionally captious about American patriotism did not react heatedly to evidence of Russian interference in US elections is bizarre.—
Darryl Pinckney,
The New York Review of Books,
5 Nov. 2020
Verb
-
Trump’s carping notwithstanding, economic growth spiked during Powell’s first year to 3 percent, the highest since the mid-2000s, and wages rose at the fastest rate since before the financial crisis.—
Roger Lowenstein,
The Atlantic,
16 Jan. 2026
-
Should the pattern hold true throughout the long march to the Super Bowl, nobody’s going to be carping about the official headcount.—
Anthony Crupi,
Sportico.com,
19 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Emond, as Suzanna’s hypercritical mother, puts an Olympic-level spin on her withering observations.—
Emily Nussbaum,
New Yorker,
16 Apr. 2026
-
After learning the risks and dangers of the Colorado Rockies’ backcountry from a loving but complicated mother, Zach Fisher, a sensitive 12-year-old, joins Bram, his hypercritical father, on a father/son ski trip.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
30 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Joy Randolph and John Early, as the two Afterlife Coordinators, have a quibbling charisma, but the movie should have done more with all its possible versions of paradise, figuring out how to use them comedically instead of just as easy punchlines.—
Owen Gleiberman,
Variety,
10 Sep. 2025
-
When the murder of 100,000 people, many of them women and children, is mentioned or denounced, or when someone dares to use terms such as genocide, ethnocide, ethnic cleansing or similar, most people choose to take issue with the characterization, quibbling over semantics.—
Uriel Kon
September 2,
Literary Hub,
2 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Ever the dedicated mother, Stacy runs to her adult daughter’s aid, fussing at her for not using a driver for her errands.—
Aramide Tinubu,
Variety,
13 Mar. 2026
-
Your son is fussing in his car seat.—
Elizabeth Bruenig,
The Atlantic,
12 Feb. 2026
Verb
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But a male voice could be heard moaning in the background.—
Tim Stelloh,
NBC news,
3 Apr. 2026
-
One minute later, Pedro Neto was yellow-carded for moaning.—
Matt Slater,
New York Times,
5 Mar. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Caviling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/caviling. Accessed 5 May. 2026.
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