quarrel
To quarrel is to fight — but usually not physically. Quarreling is a fact of life, occurring between the best of friends, in the happiest of marriages, and between parents and their children.
You’re probably familiar with the verb, quarrel, meaning having a disagreement. When there’s a quarrel, there’s anger. As a noun, quarrel, refers to the square-headed arrow shot from crossbow. This meaning of the word comes from the Old French quarel, relating to "square.” If you are quarreling, just don't reach for your crossbow and quarrel.
Definitions of quarrel
-
an angry dispute“they had a quarrel”
-
types:
- show 4 types...
- hide 4 types...
-
affray, altercation, fracas
noisy quarrel
-
bicker, bickering, fuss, pettifoggery, spat, squabble, tiff
a quarrel about petty points
-
bust-up
a serious quarrel (especially one that ends a friendship)
-
batrachomyomachia
a silly altercation
-
type of:
-
conflict, difference, difference of opinion, dispute
a disagreement or argument about something important
-
have a disagreement over something“We quarreled over the question as to who discovered America”
-
types:
- show 4 types...
- hide 4 types...
-
brawl, wrangle
to quarrel noisily, angrily or disruptively
-
spat
engage in a brief and petty quarrel
-
polemicise, polemicize, polemise, polemize
engage in a controversy
-
fall out
have a breach in relations
-
an arrow that is shot from a crossbow; has a head with four edges
-
type of:
-
arrow
a projectile with a straight thin shaft and an arrowhead on one end and stabilizing vanes on the other; intended to be shot from a bow
-
arrow
Word Family
EDITOR'S CHOICE
Express yourself in 25 languages
- Learn immersively - no memorization required
- Build skills for real-world conversations
- Get immediate feedback on your pronunciation