squabble

1600s, probably of North Germanic origin, related to Swedish dialectal skvabbel (“a dispute, quarrel, gossip”), Norwegian dialectal skvabba (“to prattle”), German dialectal schwabbeln (“to babble, prattle”), Swedish dialectal skvappa (“to chide, scold”, literally “make a splash”).

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈskwɒbl/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈskwɑːbl/

• Audio (GA)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɒbəl

squabble (plural squabbles)

1. A minor fight or argument.

   The children got into a squabble about who should ride in the front of the car.

• squabbly

squabble (third-person singular simple present squabbles, present participle squabbling, simple past and past participle squabbled)

1. (intransitive) To participate in a minor fight or argument.

   The brothers were always squabbling with each other.

   • I. Watts

     The sense of these propositions is very plain, though logicians might squabble a whole day whether they should rank them under negative or affirmative.

2. (transitive, printing) To disarrange, so that the letters or lines stand awry and require readjustment.

   to squabble type

• See also Thesaurus:squabble

• squabbler