cav ‧ il /ˈkæv ə l/ BrE AmE verb ( past tense and past participle cavilled , present participle cavilling British English , caviled , caviling American English ) [intransitive] formal
[ Date: 1500-1600 ; Language: Latin ; Origin: cavillari 'to joke, cavil' , from cavilla 'joking' ]
to make unnecessary complaints about someone or something
cavil at
They cavilled at our calculations.
—cavil noun [uncountable and countable]