carping
Use Carping in a sentence
pɪŋ adjective
1.
characterized by fussy or petulant faultfinding; querulous: carping criticism.
noun
2.
petty faultfinding.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
verb (used without object)
1.
to find fault or complain querulously or unreasonably; be niggling in criticizing; cavil: to carp at minor errors.
noun
2.
a peevish complaint.
Origin:
1200–50; Middle English carpen to speak, prate < Old Norse karpa to brag, wrangle
1200–50; Middle English carpen to speak, prate < Old Norse karpa to brag, wrangle
Related forms
carp·er, noun
Synonyms
1. criticize, deprecate, condemn, censure.
1. criticize, deprecate, condemn, censure.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source
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Link To carping
00:10
Carping
is always a great word to know.
So is bezoar. Does it mean:
| a printed punctuation mark (‽), available only in some typefaces, designed to combine the question mark (?) and the exclamation point (!), indicating a mixture of query and interjection, as after a rhetorical question. |
| a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison. |
Collins
World English Dictionary
carp1 (kɑːp) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n , pl carp, carps | |
| 1. | a freshwater teleost food fish, Cyprinus carpio, having a body covered with cycloid scales, a naked head, one long dorsal fin, and two barbels on each side of the mouth: family Cyprinidae |
| 2. | any other fish of the family Cyprinidae; a cyprinid |
| Related: cyprinid, cyprinoid | |
| [C14: from Old French carpe, of Germanic origin; compare Old High German karpfo, Old Norse karfi] | |
| carp2 (kɑːp) | |
| —vb (often foll by at) | |
| to complain or find fault; nag pettily | |
| [C13: from Old Norse karpa to boast; related to Latin carpere to pluck] | |
| 'carper2 | |
| —n | |
| carping (ˈkɑːpɪŋ) | |
| —adj | |
| tending to make petty complaints; fault-finding | |
| carpingly | |
| —adv | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
carp
"fish," 1393, from O.Fr. carpe, from V.L. carpa (c.575), possibly from Gothic *karpa. A Danube fish (hence the E.Gmc. origin of its name), introduced in Eng. ponds 14c.
carp
"complain," c.1240, from O.N. karpa "to brag," of unknown origin; meaning turned toward "find fault," probably by infl. of L. carpere "to slander, revile," lit. "to pluck" (see harvest).
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Cite This Source
Example sentences
Seemingly half their intended audience went into automatic backlash mode, carping about authenticity.
Critics from both sides are already carping about this.
Local carping might not matter, but it chimes with national grumbles.
It does seem as if the people who spend all their time carping about the deficit should step up to the plate, though.
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