QUARREL Synonyms: 84 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How does the noun 'quarrel' contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of quarrel are altercation , squabble , and wrangle . While all these words 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

Q: When would 'altercation' be a good substitute for 'quarrel'?

The words altercation and quarrel can be used in similar contexts, but altercation implies fighting with words as the chief weapon, although it may also connote blows. // a loud public altercation

Q: When can 'squabble' be used instead of 'quarrel'?

The synonyms squabble and quarrel are sometimes interchangeable, but 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

Q: When is it sensible to use 'wrangle' instead of 'quarrel'?

While the synonyms wrangle and quarrel are close in meaning, wrangle suggests undignified and often futile disputation with a noisy insistence on differing opinions. // wrangle interminably about small issues

quarrel 1 of 2

noun

Definition of quarrel next

as in dispute

an often noisy or angry expression of differing opinions a loud quarrel erupted at the next table over

Synonyms & Similar Words

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quarrel

2 of 2

verb

as in to bicker

to express different opinions about something often angrily the coach and the referee quarreled about whether the ball was in bounds

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How does the noun quarrel contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of quarrel are altercation, squabble, and wrangle. While all these words 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

When would altercation be a good substitute for quarrel?

The words altercation and quarrel can be used in similar contexts, but altercation implies fighting with words as the chief weapon, although it may also connote blows.

a loud public altercation

When can squabble be used instead of quarrel?

The synonyms squabble and quarrel are sometimes interchangeable, but 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

When is it sensible to use wrangle instead of quarrel?

While the synonyms wrangle and quarrel are close in meaning, wrangle suggests undignified and often futile disputation with a noisy insistence on differing opinions.

wrangle interminably about small issues

Examples Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of quarrel

Noun

Larry and Miller have their quarrels—for example, over whether to raise tilapia in a cattle trough inside the hut. —

Charles Bethea, The New Yorker, 4 Nov. 2024 As the quarrel escalated, one of the men pulled a blade and stabbed the victim in the torso, police said. —

Sheetal Banchariya, New York Daily News, 10 July 2024

Verb

All quarrelling with my security-deposit-keeping brick wall of a landlord was relegated to text and email. —

Melissa Kenny, refinery29.com, 30 Oct. 2024 During years of close confinement, the four sisters began to quarrel. —

Heidi Blake, The New Yorker, 10 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for quarrel

Recent Examples of Synonyms for quarrel

Noun

Research has distinguished between three simple strategies to deal with neighbor disputes: avoidance of the party whose behavior is experienced as unneighborly; confronting the neighbor face-to-face; and relying on a third party to sort out the issue, e.g. the landlord or even police.

Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 17 Dec. 2024
Nearly a decade later, a dark storm cloud has descended upon his increasingly unpopular administration, with the resignation of a top Cabinet minister over a dispute about how to manage US president-elect Donald Trump’s tariff threats.

Lex Harvey, CNN, 17 Dec. 2024