quibbling 1 of 3

adjective

as in nitpicking

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quibbling

2 of 3

noun

as in ambiguity

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quibbling

3 of 3

verb

present participle of quibble
1
as in complaining
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

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2
as in bickering
to express different opinions about something often angrily don't quibble over who gets to sit in front

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of quibbling
Adjective
More support tickets, more quibbling, more negotiating. — Jodie Cook, Forbes.com, 25 Aug. 2025
Noun
This may seem like semantic quibbling, but the stakes of imprecise legislation in this domain are quite high. — Kevin Frazier, Sun Sentinel, 22 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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for quibbling
  1. subtle
  2. ambiguity
  3. complaining
  4. bickering
  5. nuanced
  6. murkiness
  7. fussing
  8. arguing
Adjective
  • One subtle change, however, was his emphasis on spending Year 1 and building a foundation with the Tigers.
    — Seth Emerson, New York Times, 24 July 2026
  • Researchers have since modified other proteins to interact with Cas9 but catalyze more subtle changes to DNA, such as lopping off a single base or making chemical modifications that alter how it base-pairs.
    — ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 24 July 2026
Definition of subtle
Noun
  • The letters themselves carry their own aesthetic charge – dense with classical Chinese phrasing, compressed to the point of ambiguity, possessed of what Lan describes as a refined, antique beauty.
    — Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 28 July 2026
  • What's the best way to build leadership capacity, the ability to lead more effectively in times of increasing volatility, uncertainty, complexity, ambiguity (VUCA) and rapid change?
    — Dr. Joel M. Rothaizer, Forbes.com, 28 July 2026
Definition of ambiguity
Verb
  • The most dangerous toxic candidates are rarely the people who spend the interview openly complaining that their last boss was an idiot.
    — Mark Murphy, Forbes.com, 26 July 2026
  • Khan’s lawyers criticized the process leading to his ouster, complaining that he was blocked from addressing the session Friday and arguing the regulations had been rewritten to disadvantage him.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 25 July 2026
Definition of complaining
Verb
  • Establishment figures such as Jeffries and the party’s 2028 presidential candidates will need to grasp that the relationship between the DSA and the Democratic Party is not one of occasionally bickering siblings, but of parasite and host.
    — James Kirchick, The Atlantic, 21 July 2026
  • Several weeks back, Clark and White were caught bickering during a timeout huddle against the expansion Portland Fire.
    — Candace Buckner, New York Times, 27 June 2026
Definition of bickering
Adjective
  • Rather, the issue is South Korea’s nuanced food laws, which regulate which insects can go on diners’ plates.
    — Gawon Bae, CNN Money, 23 July 2026
  • This is also where the conversation around screen time becomes much more nuanced.
    — Melissa Loble, Forbes.com, 23 July 2026
Definition of nuanced
Noun
  • The murkiness of the injury bled into free agency and Christensen’s Carolina future remains unsettled, despite the team’s unproven depth options on the line, particularly at guard.
    — Charlotte Observer, Charlotte Observer, 7 July 2026
  • As Raul grapples with telling the story of Elsa’s life, he’s confronted by the murkiness of borrowing from real people for the purposes of fiction.
    — Baz Bamigboye, Deadline, 19 May 2026
Definition of murkiness
Verb
  • Similar to Egypt after its collapse earlier in the week, Switzerland exited fussing about the officiating.
    — Jerry Brewer, New York Times, 12 July 2026
  • Yes, teaching by example is often a better way of handling a challenge than fussing about it.
    — Harriette Cole, Mercury News, 17 June 2026
Definition of fussing
Verb
  • Since then, she’s fought for a bigger slice of his fortune, arguing in multiple court cases that her father contributed to the company’s growth with an early investment – and that her payout should be based on the 2026 valuation of Chey’s SK Group.
    — Stephanie Yang, CNN Money, 24 July 2026
  • Black leaders have pushed back, arguing that moving South Carolina aside after just one cycle would diminish the power of Black voters in the Democratic Party.
    — ABC News, ABC News, 24 July 2026
Definition of arguing

Browse Nearby Words

quibbles
quibbling
quick
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Cite this Entry

“Quibbling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/quibbling. Accessed 30 Jul. 2026.

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Nglish: Translation of quibbling for Spanish Speakers

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