1
as in to complain
to make often peevish criticisms or objections about matters that are minor, unimportant, or irrelevant
he spent the entire evening quibbling about the historical inaccuracies in the television series on World War II
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in to argue
to express different opinions about something often angrily
don't quibble over who gets to sit in front
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in objection
Related Words
Dissimilar Words
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of quibble
Rob Pegoraro, PC Magazine, 9 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
Susan B. Glasser, New Yorker, 9 Oct. 2025
If Alabama slips down the stretch and misses the College Football Playoff — its odds jumped from 28% to 47% Saturday night in Austin Mock’s projections — remember those quibbles.
—Matt Baker, New York Times, 28 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for quibble
Verb
Again, our reviewers could quibble with that ranking, as no Samsung sets appear in our best TVs list.
—Rob Pegoraro, PC Magazine, 9 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
Noun
There were no caveats or quibbles about what a phase two might look like.
—Susan B. Glasser, New Yorker, 9 Oct. 2025
If Alabama slips down the stretch and misses the College Football Playoff — its odds jumped from 28% to 47% Saturday night in Austin Mock’s projections — remember those quibbles.
—Matt Baker, New York Times, 28 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for quibble
Recent Examples of Synonyms for quibble
Verb
-
In recent years, staff have complained of poor working conditions brought on by overcrowding, despite director Laurence des Cars’s 2023 move to cap attendance at 30,000 visitors daily, accompanied by a ticket price increase.—
News Desk,
Artforum,
7 Nov. 2025
-
Later that day, the parents of other dancers and talent-show participants complained that my afro had covered up their kids on-screen.—
Questlove,
The Atlantic,
7 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
The conviction was later vacated in 2016, after a new legal team argued that Max’s original trial lawyer had a conflict of interest in the case.—
Daniel Kreps,
Rolling Stone,
9 Nov. 2025
-
Schumer on Saturday persisted in arguing that Republicans should accept a one-year extension of the subsidies before negotiating the future of the tax credits.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
9 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
While some senators expressed optimism about reaching a time agreement, any single objection could stall final passage.—
Hannah Parry,
MSNBC Newsweek,
10 Nov. 2025
-
The judge can sustain objections to questions if foundation hasn’t been laid by previous testimony.—
Sam Blum,
New York Times,
10 Nov. 2025
Verb
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But that certainly didn’t stop the critics from nitpicking everything from her rocking sleeveless dresses to not wearing hosiery.—
Essence,
Essence,
7 Nov. 2025
-
Certainly no other fan base will feel sorry for Blackhawks fans, but man, what Blackhawks fans wouldn’t give to be nitpicking a coach’s decision about who plays right wing on the fourth line again rather than checking out who’ll be available at the top of the draft in June.—
Mark Lazerus,
New York Times,
31 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
The prosecutor told jurors that Flores had been bickering with and mocking the man, who was heavily restrained and moving slowly, while escorting him to a courthouse holding cell after the man had a court hearing last August.—
Alex Riggins,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
6 Nov. 2025
-
The pair bicker and bond their way through the whimsical Panda Kingdom, a vibrant world that blends the everyday with the extraordinary, carrying animals and humans alike into something at once magical and mundane.—
Ben Croll,
Variety,
11 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
As the migrants boarded, a man hoisted one of the passengers in the air, a fussing 8-month-old baby whose face was flushed red from the heat.—
Daniel Gonzalez,
AZCentral.com,
6 Nov. 2025
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The final Queen of France was often homesick and would fuss about the performative nature of her aristocratic duties.—
Audrey Noble,
Vogue,
28 Oct. 2025
Verb
-
Barton gave the jury the impression of a man prepared to go into daily combat on numerous fronts, constantly fighting one battle after another, in service of his principles.—
Greg O'Keeffe,
New York Times,
9 Nov. 2025
-
Players fought, fought, fought, gave us every chance in the world.—
Maddie Hartley,
Kansas City Star,
9 Nov. 2025
Noun
-
The team was excluded from an October race in Italy, the Giro dell'Emilia, because of concerns over potentially disruptive pro-Palestine protests.—
Jackson Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
9 Nov. 2025
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The protests became tense when Coast Guard officials fired multiple shots at a U-Haul truck, whose driver allegedly attempted to reverse onto the barricaded bridge to the island, striking the driver and another bystander.—
Kyle Martin,
Mercury News,
8 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Quibble.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/quibble. Accessed 14 Nov. 2025.
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