squabble
an argument about something unimportant
TRANSLATION
squabble = Gezanke, Streiterei, Zoff --- GOOGLE INDEX squabble: approximately 2,000,000 Google hits
STATISTICS
IN THE PRESS
Archbishop Desmond Tutu pleaded with the family not to "besmirch" Mr Mandela's name with their SQUABBLE.
(BBC News)
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SQUABBLE over New Orleans eatery goes to court
(BusinessWeek magazine article headline)
(BBC News)
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SQUABBLE over New Orleans eatery goes to court
(BusinessWeek magazine article headline)
Did you
know?
squabble
noun and verb
- a noisy quarrel, usually about a trivial matter
verb
- to engage in a disagreeable argument, usually over a trivial matter
(American Heritage Dictionary)
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Squabble, like several words that begin with "squ," is probably of Scandinavian origin and likely stems from the Swedish dialectal "skvabbel," to quarrel or argue. It may also be related to the colloquial German "schwabbeln," which among other things means to unnecessarily talk too much.
Although most dictionaries define a squabble as an argument that is usually over something unimportant, a search of news sources illustrates that it frequently describes any kind of disagreement. Whether it is important or not depends on the reader’s point of view.
A quarrel over an increase in rent may seem trivial to outsiders, but the landlord and the tenant likely view it as a big deal. In the bigger scheme of things, most people would consider it a squabble. When Japan and China quarrel about who has the rights to an island in the South China Sea, some newspapers would call it a squabble, as long it doesn’t end in a military conflict.
However, real squabbles usually involve day-to-day matters such as who saw the empty parking place first or who forgot to put paper in the copy machine.
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SYNONYMS
dispute, spat, difference of opinion, feud, flap, fuss, row, tiff, scrap, quarrel
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SMUGGLE OWAD into today's conversation
"There was a squabble about who should get the big corner office."
noun and verb
- a noisy quarrel, usually about a trivial matter
verb
- to engage in a disagreeable argument, usually over a trivial matter
(American Heritage Dictionary)
---
Squabble, like several words that begin with "squ," is probably of Scandinavian origin and likely stems from the Swedish dialectal "skvabbel," to quarrel or argue. It may also be related to the colloquial German "schwabbeln," which among other things means to unnecessarily talk too much.
Although most dictionaries define a squabble as an argument that is usually over something unimportant, a search of news sources illustrates that it frequently describes any kind of disagreement. Whether it is important or not depends on the reader’s point of view.
A quarrel over an increase in rent may seem trivial to outsiders, but the landlord and the tenant likely view it as a big deal. In the bigger scheme of things, most people would consider it a squabble. When Japan and China quarrel about who has the rights to an island in the South China Sea, some newspapers would call it a squabble, as long it doesn’t end in a military conflict.
However, real squabbles usually involve day-to-day matters such as who saw the empty parking place first or who forgot to put paper in the copy machine.
---
SYNONYMS
dispute, spat, difference of opinion, feud, flap, fuss, row, tiff, scrap, quarrel
---
SMUGGLE OWAD into today's conversation
"There was a squabble about who should get the big corner office."
