Nearby Words

quibbling

[kwib-ling] Origin

quib·bling

[kwib-ling]
adjective
1.
characterized by or consisting of quibbles; carping; niggling: quibbling debates.
noun
2.
the act of a person who quibbles.
3.
an instance of quibbling: a relationship marked by frequent quibblings.

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Quibbling is always a great word to know.
So is bezoar. Does it mean:
a screen or mat covered with a dark material for shielding a camera lens from excess light or glare.
a calculus or concretion found in the stomach or intestines of certain animals, esp. ruminants, formerly reputed to be an effective remedy for poison.

Origin:
1650–60; quibble + -ing2, -ing1

quib·bling·ly, adverb
un·quib·bling, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged

quib·ble

[kwib-uhl] noun, verb, -bled, -bling.
noun
1.
an instance of the use of ambiguous, prevaricating, or irrelevant language or arguments to evade a point at issue.
2.
the general use of such arguments.
3.
petty or carping criticism; a minor objection.
verb (used without object)
4.
to equivocate.
5.
to carp; cavil.

Origin:
1605–15; perhaps derivative (compare -le) of quib gibe, apparently akin to quip

quib·bler, noun
out·quib·ble, verb (used with object), -bled, -bling.


1. evasion, equivocation, sophism, shift, ambiguity.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Collins
World English Dictionary
quibble (ˈkwɪbəl)
 
vb
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]
 
'quibbler
 
n
 
'quibbling
 
adj, —n
 
'quibblingly
 
adv

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History

quibble
1611, "a pun, a play on words," probably a dim. of quib "evasion of point at issue" (c.1550), from L. quibus "by what (things)?," dative and ablative plural of quid "what," neut. of quis (see who). The word's overuse in legal jargon supposedly gave it the association with trivial
EXPAND
argument. Meaning "equivocation, evasion of the point" is attested from 1670. The verb in this sense is from 1656.
COLLAPSE
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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