altercation

noun

al·​ter·​ca·​tion ˌȯl-tər-ˈkā-shən 

: a noisy, heated, angry dispute

He got into several altercations with his boss.

also : noisy controversy

Synonyms

• argle-bargle [chiefly British]
• argument
• argy-bargy [chiefly British]
• battle royal
• bicker
• brawl
• contretemps
• controversy
• cross fire
• disagreement
• dispute
• donnybrook
• falling-out
• fight
• hassle
• imbroglio
• kickup
• misunderstanding
• quarrel
• rhubarb
• row
• scrap
• set-to
• spat
• squabble
• tiff
• wrangle

Choose the Right Synonym for altercation

quarrel, wrangle, altercation, squabble mean a noisy dispute usually marked by anger.

quarrel implies heated verbal contention, stressing strained or severed relations which may persist beyond the contention.

a quarrel nearly destroyed the relationship

wrangle suggests undignified and often futile disputation with a noisy insistence on differing opinions.

wrangle interminably about small issues

altercation implies fighting with words as the chief weapon, although it may also connote blows.

a loud public altercation

squabble stresses childish and unseemly dispute over petty matters, but it need not imply bitterness or anger.

a brief squabble over what to do next

Examples of altercation in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

During the physical altercation, an unknown person — believed to be a man — exits the driver’s side of the blue sedan with a rifle and fires multiple rounds into the crowd of minors. —Cindy Krischer Goodman, Sun Sentinel, 24 June 2024

Intimate partner violence is not only depressingly common in this country, but made much deadlier by the presence of a firearm, which can turn an altercation into a lethal one in a matter of seconds. —New York Daily News Editorial Board, New York Daily News, 22 June 2024

According to the warrant affidavit, the inmate Carlson has been accused of assaulting was involved in an altercation with another inmate on Aug. 12, 2023, just after 8:45 p.m., prompting a code blue in the MacDougall-Walker Correctional Institution in Suffield. —Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 21 June 2024

Pennsylvania State Police said the altercation occurred Tuesday, June 18, on Madison Avenue in Export, according to CBS affiliate KDKA and ABC affiliate WTAE. —Abigail Adams, Peoplemag, 19 June 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English altercacioun, borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French altercacion, borrowed from Latin altercātiōn-, altercātiō, from altercārī, altercāre "to dispute vehemently, wrangle" + -tiōn-, -tiō, suffix of verbal action — more at altercate

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined above

Kids Definition

altercation

noun

al·​ter·​ca·​tion ˌȯl-tər-ˈkā-shən 

: a noisy or angry dispute