as in bickering
to express different opinions about something often angrily
the children squabbled loudly over who got to play with the toy first
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Recent Examples of squabbling
That’s not because its member countries have suddenly stopped squabbling or its bureaucratic inertia has melted away.
—
Joseph De Weck, The Atlantic, 17 Feb. 2026
Hulu Sometimes, after a long day at work, there's nothing more comforting than watching a bunch of richer-than-rich investors squabbling over the inventions of eager entrepreneurs.
—Kevin Jacobsen, Entertainment Weekly, 4 Feb. 2026
Discovery squabbles Now, attorneys in the ET Gathering and Processing lawsuit are squabbling over the pace of the production of records in the discovery phase.
—Paul Monies, Oklahoma Watch, 3 Feb. 2026
Democrats and Republicans continued squabbling over the content of trade policy, but the protectionist impulse largely receded and was replaced by a consensus that lower trade barriers would support economic recovery and advance broader foreign policy goals.
—Inu Manak, Time, 16 Jan. 2026
While the fans are always squabbling, the idea of two teams of professional athletes, not to mention coaches, actually disliking each other has become rarer.
—Jon Greenberg, New York Times, 14 Jan. 2026
The Vernon Point Neighborhood Association is a passionate bunch, whether squabbling over historically inaccurate porch railings or debating trash can protocol.
—Greg Evans, Deadline, 12 Dec. 2025
Norris lost a place to Leclerc and spent more than 20 laps squabbling with the Ferrari driver before overtaking him.
—Sahil Kapur, NBC news, 19 Oct. 2025
The year is 1868 and Benjamin Guinness, the richest man in the country, has just died, leaving his four squabbling adult children to try and carry on the family’s legacy.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 25 Sep. 2025
Joseph De Weck, The Atlantic, 17 Feb. 2026
Hulu Sometimes, after a long day at work, there's nothing more comforting than watching a bunch of richer-than-rich investors squabbling over the inventions of eager entrepreneurs.
—Kevin Jacobsen, Entertainment Weekly, 4 Feb. 2026
Discovery squabbles Now, attorneys in the ET Gathering and Processing lawsuit are squabbling over the pace of the production of records in the discovery phase.
—Paul Monies, Oklahoma Watch, 3 Feb. 2026
Democrats and Republicans continued squabbling over the content of trade policy, but the protectionist impulse largely receded and was replaced by a consensus that lower trade barriers would support economic recovery and advance broader foreign policy goals.
—Inu Manak, Time, 16 Jan. 2026
While the fans are always squabbling, the idea of two teams of professional athletes, not to mention coaches, actually disliking each other has become rarer.
—Jon Greenberg, New York Times, 14 Jan. 2026
The Vernon Point Neighborhood Association is a passionate bunch, whether squabbling over historically inaccurate porch railings or debating trash can protocol.
—Greg Evans, Deadline, 12 Dec. 2025
Norris lost a place to Leclerc and spent more than 20 laps squabbling with the Ferrari driver before overtaking him.
—Sahil Kapur, NBC news, 19 Oct. 2025
The year is 1868 and Benjamin Guinness, the richest man in the country, has just died, leaving his four squabbling adult children to try and carry on the family’s legacy.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 25 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for squabbling
Verb
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For those of us interested in governing and not bickering, this is a good thing.—
Gail Slater,
Rolling Stone,
16 Apr. 2026
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In some states, lawmakers are still bickering over how money should be spent.—
Lisa Jarvis,
Twin Cities,
8 Apr. 2026
Verb
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For tariffs that have been liquidated within 180 days, importers can also file a protest, which is a formal challenge with the CBP arguing that an error was made in assessing duties, such as the tariff rate applied to an import.—
Miranda Jeyaretnam,
Time,
17 Apr. 2026
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The estate is seeking compensatory and punitive damages, funeral expenses, attorney's fees, and other relief, arguing that multiple parties share responsibility for Avery's death under Georgia law because their actions combined to cause a single fatal outcome.—
Christopher Harris,
CBS News,
17 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Police said witness accounts indicate that the couple arrived at Zuri Hotel in Zanzibar on April 4 and had been quarreling frequently until the night of April 8, when hotel management separated them and asked McCann to move to a separate villa about a 10-minute walk away.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
16 Apr. 2026
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Her father, after quarreling with Antigone’s mother, locked her out of their house overnight, which led to a terrible accident.—
Rachel Vorona Cote,
The Atlantic,
5 Jan. 2026
Verb
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The camp is entirely dependent on aid, disrupted after cuts by USAID last year and again by fighting between Syrian and Kurdish forces this February.—
Jane Arraf,
NPR,
11 Apr. 2026
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Despite how difficult sitting through the case was, the jurors commended Miami-Dade Circuit Court Judge Marisa Tinkler Mendez for her fairness — and lead prosecutor Abbe Rifkin for fighting so hard for Quatisha.—
Grethel Aguila,
Miami Herald,
11 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Squabbling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/squabbling. Accessed 20 Apr. 2026.
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