quibble
verb/ˈkwɪbl/
/ˈkwɪbl/
[intransitive]Verb Forms
| present simple I / you / we / they quibble | /ˈkwɪbl/ /ˈkwɪbl/ |
| he / she / it quibbles | /ˈkwɪblz/ /ˈkwɪblz/ |
| past simple quibbled | /ˈkwɪbld/ /ˈkwɪbld/ |
| past participle quibbled | /ˈkwɪbld/ /ˈkwɪbld/ |
| -ing form quibbling | /ˈkwɪblɪŋ/ /ˈkwɪblɪŋ/ |
- quibble (about/over something) to argue or complain about a small matter or an unimportant detail
- It isn't worth quibbling over such a small amount.
Word Originearly 17th cent. (in the sense ‘play on words, pun’): diminutive of obsolete quib ‘a petty objection’, probably from Latin quibus, dative and ablative plural of qui, quae, quod ‘who, what, which’, frequently used in legal documents and so associated with subtle distinctions or verbal niceties.Want to learn more?
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quibble