quibbling

USAGE SUMMARY

The word 'quibbling' is correct and usable in written English.
It means to argue or complain about small, insignificant things. For example, “They spent the evening quibbling over the small details of the project.”.

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Science

Formal & Business

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

60 human-written examples

"God as witness, they are quibbling over nothing and nonsense.

The Guardian

That aimed to replace the state pension with a private one, into which the state would pay a minimum contribution on behalf of every adult, and whose minimum value would be guaranteed by the state.Strikingly, Mr Field broadly welcomed Mr Lilley's proposal, although quibbling with some details.

The Economist

There are already worrying signs of a shortfall in recruitment, especially in the busiest volunteer force which operates in the capital St Helier.I tell you what the greatest threat is, he said, as we whizzed down manicured country lanes in his private car: it is health and safety rules, and quibbling insurance companies.

The Economist

But it does offer executive education, despite grandly turning down most of the companies that want its academics to work with their staff and refusing the usual quibbling over fees.Off-the-peg (or open-enrolment) courses are harder to sell these days.

The Economist

Who needs a pack of pissant, quarrelsome and constantly quibbling governments?The only plausible scenario in which Europe would be of any help in a crisis is as a staging area for military operations (like Italy during the Kosovo war).

The Economist

Every city in the country has had to raise security standards since the war's start sometimes at the whim of a colour-coded national threat level and nearly every state is quibbling over just when the promised homeland-security money will turn up in its coffers.Much of the new security is highly visible.

The Economist

"Education is not just a political buzzword for him .No doubt quibbling about how much credit Mr Bush should take for Texas's better schools is like asking whether another great self-publicist, Rudy Giuliani, deserves all the credit for New York city's safer streets.

The Economist

To make matters worse, at a parliamentary committee meeting Mr Abe appeared to distance himself from apologies made by former prime ministers, quibbling about the definition of terms.More important than these April visits will be the question of Yasukuni on August 15th, the emotionally charged anniversary of Japan's defeat in the second world war.

The Economist

He notes that Mr Goldhagen treats cases of sadism as evidence that Germans enthusiastically embraced "eliminationist anti-Semitism"; yet when Germans recoil at brutality, as many did, he insists they are quibbling about the way Jews were killed, not about the killings themselves.Ms Birn notes that, brutalised by war, the Germans' East European collaborators were just as sadistic, if not more so.

The Economist

Many of them spend an inordinate amount of time quibbling about minor semantic points, or trivial differences in statistics.

The Economist

It is hard to imagine anyone quibbling over their condemnation.Some do counter that Stalin was, despite his excessive toughness, a great figure in Russian and Soviet history.

The Economist

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Use "quibbling" to describe situations where the focus is on minor details rather than substantial issues. This can add a sense of triviality or pettiness to the argument.

Common error

Avoid using "quibbling" in formal or professional writing when a more neutral term like "disagreeing" or "questioning" would be more appropriate. "Quibbling" often carries a negative connotation.

Linguistic Context

The word "quibbling" functions primarily as a present participle or gerund, often describing an ongoing action of arguing or raising petty objections. As evidenced by Ludwig, it highlights a focus on trivial details.

Expression frequency: Very common

Frequent in

News & Media

60%

Science

20%

Formal & Business

10%

Less common in

Encyclopedias

5%

Wiki

3%

Reference

2%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, "quibbling" is a versatile term, predominantly used as a verb to describe arguing over minor details. As Ludwig AI confirms, the usage of the term is correct and understandable. While grammatically sound, its use should be considered in light of the context, avoiding overuse in highly formal settings where neutrality is preferred. With a very common occurrence in news and media, the examples showcased by Ludwig demonstrate the word's prevalence and adaptability across diverse written works. Remember to select the most fitting term based on your intended meaning, avoiding "quibbling" when a more formal alternative enhances clarity and professionalism.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

nitpicking

Focuses more on finding very small faults or errors.

caviling

Implies raising petty or trivial objections.

arguing over details

More explicit about the nature of the argument being about minor points.

splitting hairs

Highlights the excessive focus on minute, often meaningless, distinctions.

raising objections

A more general term for expressing disagreement or disapproval.

bickering

Suggests a more emotional and less rational form of disagreement.

pettifogging

Implies being deliberately evasive or deceptive about minor details.

wrangling

Suggests a more complex and prolonged dispute, often involving multiple parties.

disputing trivialities

Directly states that the disagreement is over unimportant matters.

squabbling

Emphasizes the petty and often childish nature of the argument.

FAQs

How to use "quibbling" in a sentence?

You can use "quibbling" to describe arguing or raising minor objections about trivial details, as in, "They were "quibbling" over the wording of the contract."

What can I say instead of "quibbling"?

You can use alternatives like "nitpicking", "caviling", or "splitting hairs" depending on the specific nuance you want to convey.

Which is correct, "quibbling" or "quibbleing"?

"Quibbling" is the correct spelling. "Quibbleing" is a misspelling of the word.

What's the difference between "quibbling" and "disagreeing"?

"Quibbling" implies a focus on minor, often insignificant, details in an argument, while "disagreeing" is a more general term for expressing a difference of opinion.