INDEX:
1. to argue
2. to argue about something very unimportant
3. to deliberately start an argument
4. an argument
5. an argument about something unimportant
6. someone who likes arguing
7. to stop arguing
8. when a bad situation or problem makes people argue
RELATED WORDS
when people who have argued do not talk to each other : ↑ TALK (17)
see also
↑ DISAGREE
↑ SHOUT
↑ FIGHT
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1. to argue
▷ argue /ˈɑːʳgjuː/ [intransitive verb]
if people argue, they speak angrily to each other because they disagree about something :
▪ Jim and Beth seem to spend all their time arguing.
argue with
▪ Don’t argue with me, John. Just do what I tell you.
argue about/over
▪ The two men at the bar were arguing about politics.
▪ My kids spend more time arguing over the rules than they do playing the game.
▷ quarrel /ˈkwɒrəlǁˈkwɔː-, ˈkwɑː-/ [intransitive verb]
if two people quarrel, they argue angrily and may stop being friends with each other :
▪ Whenever my sisters meet they always end up quarrelling.
quarrel with
▪ She left home after quarrelling with her parents.
quarrel about/over
▪ The two brothers had quarreled over ownership of the farm.
▷ fight /faɪt/ [intransitive verb]
to argue in an angry and violent way, especially with someone you know well :
▪ Kerry’s parents are always fighting -- I’m not surprised she left home.
fight over/about
▪ Two men fighting over a parking space were arrested earlier today.
▪ If you two don’t stop fighting about what to watch I’m going to send you to your room.
▷ have a fight also have a row British /hæv ə ˈfaɪt, hæv ə ˈraʊ/ [verb phrase] informal
if two people have a fight or have a row, they argue very angrily and noisily :
have a fight with
▪ April had a fight with her boyfriend and doesn’t want to come out of her room.
have a fight about/over
▪ Kelvin and his wife have endless rows over money.
▷ fall out with /ˌfɔːl ˈaʊt wɪð/ [verb phrase] British
to stop having a friendly relationship with someone, because you have disagreed with them :
▪ I think she’s fallen out with her boyfriend.
fall out with about/over
▪ Murray left the company after he fell out with the chairman over his salary.
falling out []
have a falling out (with somebody)
▪ We had a falling out after he asked me to lie for him.
▷ be at each other’s throats /biː ət iːtʃ ˌʌðəʳz ˈθrəʊts/ [verb phrase]
if two people or groups are at each other’s throats, they are always arguing in a very angry way because they cannot agree about something :
▪ Congress and the President have been at each other’s throats for so long that it’s a wonder they can agree on anything.
▷ clash /klæʃ/ [intransitive verb]
if two groups of people clash, they argue publicly with each other about a particular subject -- used in news reports :
clash with somebody
▪ Democrats clashed with Republicans last night in a heated debate about unemployment.
clash over something
▪ France and Britain are likely to clash over the proposed space programme.
2. to argue about something very unimportant
▷ squabble /ˈskwɒb ə lǁˈskwɑː-/ [intransitive verb]
to argue noisily about something that is not really important -- use this especially about children or when you think someone is behaving like a child :
▪ Oh, for goodness sake, stop squabbling, you two!
squabble about/over
▪ The kids always squabble about who should do the dishes.
▷ bicker /ˈbɪkəʳ/ [intransitive verb]
to continually argue about something unimportant in a way that annoys other people :
▪ Whenever we go shopping together we always start bickering.
bicker about/over
▪ The mayor and the town council spent most of Thursday bickering over how to balance next year’s budget.
bickering [uncountable noun]
▪ She never visits her parents because she can’t stand the constant bickering.
▷ quibble /ˈkwɪb ə l/ [intransitive verb]
to argue in an annoying way about unimportant details, especially about whether something is exactly correct :
▪ She said I owed her twenty dollars. I thought it was twenty-five but I wasn’t going to quibble.
quibble over
▪ Why quibble over whose turn it is to buy lunch? Split it, and forget about it.
▷ split hairs /ˌsplɪt ˈheəʳz/ [verb phrase usually in progressive]
to say that there is a difference between two things and argue about this, when really the difference is too small to be important :
▪ Batard is a little sweeter than Chevalier but perhaps that’s splitting hairs; both these wines are excellent.
3. to deliberately start an argument
▷ start an argument /ˌstɑːʳt ən ˈɑːʳgjɑmənt/ [verb phrase]
▪ I didn’t want to start an argument, so I kept quiet.
▷ pick a fight also pick a quarrel British /ˌpɪk ə ˈfaɪt, ˌpɪk ə ˈkwɒrəlǁ -ˈkwɔː-/ [verb phrase]
to deliberately start an argument with someone by saying something that you know will make them angry :
▪ Just ignore him, he’s always picking fights.
pick a fight with
▪ Burton was at the bar, trying to pick a quarrel with a stranger.
▷ stir things up /ˌstɜːʳ θɪŋz ˈʌp/ [verb phrase]
to deliberately do or say something to make other people argue because you want to cause problems for them :
▪ Just as we were beginning to get on with each other again, Jackie came and stirred things up.
▪ Ignore him -- he’s just trying to stir things up because he’s jealous.
▷ make an issue (out) of /ˌmeɪk ən ˈɪʃuː (aʊt) ɒv/ [verb phrase] especially spoken
to argue about something because you think it is important, even though other people may think you are being unreasonable :
▪ I don’t want to make an issue out of it, but that’s the second time you’ve been late this week.
▪ Although she was annoyed that Ian had given her secret away, she decided not to make an issue of it.
4. an argument
▷ argument /ˈɑːʳgjɑmənt/ [countable noun]
when people speak angrily to each other because they disagree about something :
have an argument
▪ My sister and I had a terrible argument last night.
argument about/over
▪ A 29-year-old man was shot and killed today after an argument over a gambling debt.
argument with
▪ I’m sorry I’m not in a good mood. I had an argument with my husband this morning.
get into an argument
to start arguing, without intending to
▪ Phil got into an argument with a guy at the bar.
▷ row /raʊ/ [countable noun] British
a loud angry argument that continues for a short time between people who know each other well. Row is also used about a serious disagreement between politicians concerning important public matters :
▪ There were always rows when my dad got home.
▪ The World Trade Organization will give the two countries 60 days to end their row.
row over
▪ The newspapers are full of stories about the continuing row over private education.
blazing row
a very angry, noisy argument
▪ The couple in the house next door were having a blazing row.
big row
▪ A few months ago they had a big row, and Steve drove off and spent the weekend in London.
▷ quarrel /ˈkwɒrəlǁˈkwɔː-, ˈkwɑː-/ [countable noun]
an angry argument between people who know each other well :
▪ a family quarrel
quarrel with
▪ I was tired of these stupid quarrels with my parents.
have a quarrel
▪ They had some sort of quarrel years ago, and they haven’t spoken to each other since.
▷ disagreement /ˌdɪsəˈgriːmənt/ [countable noun]
a situation in which people disagree with each other, but without shouting or getting angry :
disagreement about/over
▪ There were the occasional disagreements about money, but mostly we got on well.
disagreement with
▪ Ginny had left the company after a disagreement with her boss.
disagreement between
▪ This bill will never be passed if disagreements between Democrats and Republicans aren’t settled soon.
▷ dispute /dɪˈspjuːt, ˈdɪspjuːt/ [countable noun] formal
when two people, organizations, or countries publicly disagree and argue with each other about something important :
dispute over/about
▪ The dispute over weapons inspections is likely to be the main topic of tomorrow’s meeting.
dispute with
▪ Morris has been involved in a long legal dispute with his publisher.
dispute between
▪ Representatives from both sides met late last night in an attempt to settle the budget dispute between Congress and the President.
settle a dispute
end it by agreement
▪ All efforts to settle the dispute have so far failed.
▷ bust-up /ˈbʌst ʌp/ [countable noun] British informal
a very bad quarrel or fight :
▪ After the bust-up, I didn’t see Rick for several weeks.
have a big bust-up
▪ She and her boyfriend had a big bust-up over who was supposed to look after the kids.
bust-up with
▪ Christie was involved in an angry bust-up with reporters and photographers outside the courtroom.
▷ exchange /ɪksˈtʃeɪndʒ/ [countable noun]
a very short argument between people or groups, especially in a formal or official situation such as a political meeting :
▪ During angry exchanges in Parliament the Prime Minister said he would not change existing policies.
heated exchange
an angry exchange
▪ A series of heated exchanges between the two governments followed.
▷ showdown /ˈʃəʊdaʊn/ [countable noun usually singular]
a serious argument that comes at the end of a period of time during which there has been a lot of disagreement and angry feelings :
▪ Everyone in the office knew that there would be a showdown sooner or later, the way things were going.
▪ The Senate moved toward another showdown with the President over the budget.
▷ feud /fjuːd/ [countable noun]
an unpleasant and often violent situation between two groups, especially families, in which people have been arguing for so long that they cannot remember the cause of it :
▪ The feud between the Hatfields and the McCoys raged for 20 years.
▪ He has been accused of letting personal feuds affect his judgement.
5. an argument about something unimportant
▷ squabble /ˈskwɒb ə lǁˈskwɑː-/ [countable noun]
a noisy argument about something that is not important, especially between children :
▪ Uncle Matt bought them a computer game to share, which led to endless squabbles.
squabble about/over
▪ The kids are having their usual squabble over which TV show they’re going to watch.
▷ tiff /tɪf/ [countable noun]
a short argument about something unimportant, especially between two people who are in love :
have a tiff (with somebody)
▪ Whenever she and Bernard had a tiff, Ari would go for a long drive to think about things.
lover’s tiff
▪ It was just a silly lovers’ tiff -- we couldn’t even remember why it had started.
▷ spat /spæt/ [countable noun]
a short angry argument, usually about something unimportant :
▪ The girls were having a spat in the back of the car over who got to use the armrest.
▪ It was just a little spat over who did the dishes last.
6. someone who likes arguing
▷ argumentative/quarrelsome /ˌɑːʳgjɑˈmentətɪv, ˈkwɒrəls ə mǁˈkwɔː-, ˈkwɑː-/ [adjective]
someone who is argumentative seems to like arguing and starting arguments. Quarrelsome is less common than argumentative and is used especially in written English :
▪ When he drinks too much he becomes argumentative.
▪ She had had enough of all her quarrelsome relatives.
▷ confrontational /ˌkɒnfrənˈteɪʃ ə nəlǁˌkɑːn-/ [adjective]
speaking to people in a very direct way that is likely to cause an angry argument -- use this when you think someone is behaving unreasonably :
▪ Some are worried that Beier’s confrontational style will upset his staff.
▪ In an attempt to improve his image, Stevens has decided to be less confrontational.
7. to stop arguing
▷ make up also make it up British /ˌmeɪk ˈʌp, ˌmeɪk ɪt ˈʌp/ [intransitive phrasal verb] especially spoken
if two people who know each other well make up or make it up, they stop arguing and start being friendly to each other again :
▪ I’m glad to see you two have made up.
make up with
▪ Have you made it up with your sister yet?
▷ patch up your differences/settle your differences /ˌpætʃ ʌp jɔːʳˈdɪf ə rənsə̇z, ˌsetl jɔːʳ ˈdɪf ə rənsə̇z/ [verb phrase]
if two people or organizations patch up or settle their differences, they stop arguing and discuss things in a sensible way until they come to an agreement :
▪ Their final attempt to settle their differences ended in disappointment and separation.
patch up your differences/settle your differences with
▪ Gary’s first priority on his return home was to patch up his differences with his sister.
▷ bury the hatchet /ˌberi ðə ˈhætʃə̇t/ [verb phrase]
to agree to stop arguing and forgive each other, especially a long time after you first had the argument :
▪ It’s about time they buried the hatchet after all these years.
▪ Since those two buried the hatchet, life in the office has been much quieter.
▷ clear the air /ˌklɪəʳ ði ˈeəʳ/ [verb phrase]
to talk calmly and seriously with someone about what you have been arguing about, in order to end the disagreement and feel better :
▪ I think it’s about time you called her to clear the air.
▪ In an attempt to clear the air, Mills has planned a meeting with employees to discuss the issue.
▷ conciliatory /kənˈsɪliət ə riǁ-tɔːri/ [adjective]
behaving in a way that shows that you want to end an argument with someone :
▪ The tone of my letter had been friendly and conciliatory, so I was disappointed by the cold reply I received.
conciliatory gesture/message/tone etc
▪ American intelligence flights over Cuba had been stopped as a conciliatory gesture.
▷ reconciliation /ˌrekənsɪliˈeɪʃ ə n/ [countable/uncountable noun]
when two people, countries etc agree to stop arguing or fighting after a long period of disagreement, and have a friendly relationship again :
▪ After years of fighting, there was now a spirit of national reconciliation in South Africa.
reconciliation with
▪ Giles is not interested in a reconciliation with his father.
reconciliation between
▪ A large group of demonstrators stayed up all night praying for reconciliation between the two countries.
8. when a bad situation or problem makes people argue
▷ cause an argument/lead to an argument /ˌkɔːz ən ˈɑːʳgjɑmənt, ˌliːd tʊ ən ˈɑːʳgjɑmənt/ [verb phrase]
if an unpleasant situation or problem causes or leads to an argument, it makes people argue :
▪ Don’t tell him about the money. It’ll only cause an argument.
▪ The cleaning rota always leads to arguments in our house.
▷ come between /ˌkʌm bɪˈtwiːn/ [transitive phrasal verb]
if a bad situation or a problem comes between two people, it makes them argue, usually with the result that they stop being friends :
▪ We were such close friends that I didn’t think anything could come between us.
▪ I was determined not to let my career come between us.
▷ cause a rift between /ˌkɔːz ə ˈrɪft bɪˌtwiːn/ [verb phrase]
if a bad situation, a problem etc causes a rift between two people, it makes them have a small argument with the result that they are not as friendly as they were before :
▪ The street fighting has caused a slight rift between the communities involved.
▪ No one is quite sure about what caused the rift between the two actors.