quibble
quib·ble
(kwĭb′əl)intr.v. quib·bled, quib·bling, quib·bles
To argue or find fault over trivial matters or minor concerns; cavil.
n.
1. A trivial matter or minor concern raised in arguing or finding fault.
2. Archaic A pun.
[Probably diminutive of obsolete quib, equivocation, perhaps from Latin quibus, dative and ablative pl. of quī, who, what (from its frequent use in legal documents); see kwo- in Indo-European roots.]
quib′bler n.
Synonyms: quibble, carp1, cavil, nitpick
These verbs mean to raise petty or frivolous objections or complaints: quibbling about minor details; a critic who constantly carped; caviling about the price of coffee; tried to stop nitpicking all the time.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
quibble
(ˈkwɪbəl)vb (intr)
1. to make trivial objections; prevaricate
2. archaic to play on words; pun
n
3. a trivial objection or equivocation, esp one used to avoid an issue
4. archaic a pun
[C17: probably from obsolete quib, perhaps from Latin quibus (from quī who, which), as used in legal documents, with reference to their obscure phraseology]
ˈquibbler n
ˈquibbling adj, n
ˈquibblingly adv
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014
quib•ble
(ˈkwɪb əl)n., v. -bled, -bling. n.
1. a petty or carping criticism.
2. an instance of the use of ambiguous, deceptive, or irrelevant language or arguments to evade a point at issue.
v.i.3. to argue or complain about trivial matters; bicker, carp, or cavil.
4. to use evasive or ambiguous language; equivocate.
[1605–15; perhaps derivative (compare -le) of quib gibe, appar. akin to quip]
quib′bler, n.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
quibble
Past participle: quibbled
Gerund: quibbling
| Imperative |
|---|
| quibble |
| quibble |
| Present |
|---|
| I quibble |
| you quibble |
| he/she/it quibbles |
| we quibble |
| you quibble |
| they quibble |
| Preterite |
|---|
| I quibbled |
| you quibbled |
| he/she/it quibbled |
| we quibbled |
| you quibbled |
| they quibbled |
| Present Continuous |
|---|
| I am quibbling |
| you are quibbling |
| he/she/it is quibbling |
| we are quibbling |
| you are quibbling |
| they are quibbling |
| Present Perfect |
|---|
| I have quibbled |
| you have quibbled |
| he/she/it has quibbled |
| we have quibbled |
| you have quibbled |
| they have quibbled |
| Past Continuous |
|---|
| I was quibbling |
| you were quibbling |
| he/she/it was quibbling |
| we were quibbling |
| you were quibbling |
| they were quibbling |
| Past Perfect |
|---|
| I had quibbled |
| you had quibbled |
| he/she/it had quibbled |
| we had quibbled |
| you had quibbled |
| they had quibbled |
| Future |
|---|
| I will quibble |
| you will quibble |
| he/she/it will quibble |
| we will quibble |
| you will quibble |
| they will quibble |
| Future Perfect |
|---|
| I will have quibbled |
| you will have quibbled |
| he/she/it will have quibbled |
| we will have quibbled |
| you will have quibbled |
| they will have quibbled |
| Future Continuous |
|---|
| I will be quibbling |
| you will be quibbling |
| he/she/it will be quibbling |
| we will be quibbling |
| you will be quibbling |
| they will be quibbling |
| Present Perfect Continuous |
|---|
| I have been quibbling |
| you have been quibbling |
| he/she/it has been quibbling |
| we have been quibbling |
| you have been quibbling |
| they have been quibbling |
| Future Perfect Continuous |
|---|
| I will have been quibbling |
| you will have been quibbling |
| he/she/it will have been quibbling |
| we will have been quibbling |
| you will have been quibbling |
| they will have been quibbling |
| Past Perfect Continuous |
|---|
| I had been quibbling |
| you had been quibbling |
| he/she/it had been quibbling |
| we had been quibbling |
| you had been quibbling |
| they had been quibbling |
| Conditional |
|---|
| I would quibble |
| you would quibble |
| he/she/it would quibble |
| we would quibble |
| you would quibble |
| they would quibble |
| Past Conditional |
|---|
| I would have quibbled |
| you would have quibbled |
| he/she/it would have quibbled |
| we would have quibbled |
| you would have quibbled |
| they would have quibbled |
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
| Noun | 1. | quibble - an evasion of the point of an argument by raising irrelevant distinctions or objections equivocation, evasion - a statement that is not literally false but that cleverly avoids an unpleasant truth |
| Verb | 1. | quibble - evade the truth of a point or question by raising irrelevant objections evade, hedge, sidestep, skirt, parry, fudge, circumvent, dodge, elude, duck, put off - avoid or try to avoid fulfilling, answering, or performing (duties, questions, or issues); "He dodged the issue"; "she skirted the problem"; "They tend to evade their responsibilities"; "he evaded the questions skillfully" |
| 2. | quibble - argue over petty things; "Let's not quibble over pennies" |
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.
quibble
noun
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002
quibble
verb1. To raise unnecessary or trivial objections:
2. To engage in a quarrel:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
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