1
as in complains
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 argues
to express different opinions about something often angrily
don't quibble over who gets to sit in front
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for quibbles
Verb
-
At the same time, the Brighton captain, Pascal Gross, complains to referee Chris Kavanagh.—
Stuart James,
New York Times,
6 Mar. 2026 -
And a woman who complains is said to be defying nature itself.—
Richard Brody,
New Yorker,
4 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The Times argues that the Pentagon has applied its own rules inconsistently.—
Michael Kunzelman,
Los Angeles Times,
7 Mar. 2026
-
The Times argues that the Pentagon has applied its own rules inconsistently.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
6 Mar. 2026
Noun
-
Leaders of the Upper Basin states also are raising objections, saying the Interior Department’s current options rely on flawed assumptions, fail to impose large enough cuts on the Lower Basin and go beyond the federal government’s authority.—
Ian James,
Los Angeles Times,
4 Mar. 2026
-
Large language models are extraordinarily good at inferring context clues—in this case, the user’s name, professional background, and likely objections—and tailoring output accordingly.—
Nick Lichtenberg,
Fortune,
3 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
So your first indication of problems can be a client who nitpicks every job, forcing you to return to re-trim the 2-inch patch of sod that the client claims wasn’t properly manicured.—
Kathy Kristof,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
12 Jan. 2026
-
But Brian constantly nitpicks her purchases.—
Kamaron McNair,
CNBC,
7 Aug. 2025
Verb
-
The pope, played by Samora la Perdida, is a mincing oaf who bickers with Galas about the value of translating Wagner.—
Jackson McHenry,
Vulture,
19 Sep. 2025
Noun
-
But Fritz has been having a bit of a wander in the desert lately due to his physical challenges.—
Douglas Robson,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Mar. 2026
-
Despite these challenges, the verification system continued functioning throughout the entire flight, proving that blockchain technology can reliably operate on lightweight onboard hardware used in autonomous aerial vehicles.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
9 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
The three bills also are not the first headline-grabbing action from Schroer, who serves as chair of the Senate’s hard-right Freedom Caucus, which frequently quarrels with GOP leadership.—
Kacen Bayless,
Kansas City Star,
8 Jan. 2026
Noun
-
Since 2017, millions of Iranians have participated in protests; tens of thousands have been killed.—
Robin Wright,
New Yorker,
8 Mar. 2026
-
The 2025 protests against corruption and poor governance were triggered by a social media ban before snowballing into a popular revolt against the government.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
7 Mar. 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Quibbles.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/quibbles. Accessed 12 Mar. 2026.
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