Synonyms of squabbling

squabbling

verb

present participle of squabble

as in bickering

to express different opinions about something often angrily

the children squabbled loudly over who got to play with the toy first

Synonyms & Similar Words

• bickering
• arguing
• quarreling
• fighting
• clashing
• wrangling
• brawling
• quibbling
• disputing
• debating
• scrapping
• rowing
• discussing
• hassling
• jarring
• controverting
• spatting
• falling out
• argufying
• tiffing
• altercating
• brabbling
• mixing it up
• butting heads
• locking horns
• contesting
• bandying words
• contending
• daring
• nitpicking
• challenging
• fussing
• tangling
• protesting
• defying
• objecting
• kicking
• caviling
• considering

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• coexisting
• getting along
• accepting
• agreeing
• consenting
• concurring
• assenting

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of squabbling

Mills, sympathetic to conspiratorial beliefs about the 2020 election and hailed by some election skeptics as a champion of voting integrity, has long clashed with members, squabbling over his power. — Caleb Groves, AJC.com, 9 Oct. 2026

Later in the day, on the other hand, the artificial grass was hardly visible under the beach towels, and there were parents with squabbling children doing cannonballs into the pool. — Elvira Navarro, Harpers Magazine, 22 Sep. 2026

There were the two seen squabbling with Jackie last month, another Shadow batted out of the nest before Luna and Sandy left and now eaglet KD1 is making her presence known. — Joy Benedict, CBS News, 12 Aug. 2026

The squabbling banter between the two is priceless, even endearing. — Randy Myers, Mercury News, 28 July 2026

The Greek myths are rife with petty and meddlesome deities squabbling, playing favorites, punishing harshly, and otherwise wreaking havoc on the lives of mortal men. — Louis Peitzman, Vulture, 17 July 2026

The actor ended up calling attention to his own hat after squabbling with cast member Sarah Sherman — who, to match the country singer's vibe, pulled up in a cowboy hat, leaving Gosling as the odd man out. — Rachel Raposas, PEOPLE, 30 June 2026

With supply shrinking, the states continue squabbling. — Trevor Hughes, USA Today, 26 June 2026

Parties generally avoid this kind of squabbling in wide-open governor’s races by letting the candidates compete and seeing who wins the primary, said Gregory Koger, a political science professor at the University of Miami. — Jeffrey Schweers, The Orlando Sentinel, 21 June 2026