contention

[ kuhn-ten-shuhn ]
See synonyms for contention on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a struggling together in opposition; strife.

  2. a striving in rivalry; competition; contest.

  1. strife in debate; dispute; controversy.

  2. a point contended for or affirmed in controversy.

Origin of contention

1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English, from Anglo-French, from Latin contentiōn-, stem of contentiō; from content(us) “competed, striven” (past participle of contendere “to compete, strive, draw tight”; see contend ) + -iō -ion

Other words for contention

Opposites for contention

Other words from contention

  • con·ten·tion·al, adjective
  • non·con·ten·tion, noun
  • pre·con·ten·tion, noun

Words Nearby contention

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How to use contention in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for contention

contention

/ (kənˈtɛnʃən) /


noun
  1. a struggling between opponents; competition

  2. dispute in an argument (esp in the phrase bone of contention)

  1. a point asserted in argument

Origin of contention

1
C14: from Latin contentiō exertion, from contendere to contend

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with contention

contention

see bone of contention.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.