quib|ble

quib|ble
quib|ble «KWIHB uhl», noun, verb, -bled, -bling.
–n.
1. an unfair and petty evasion of the point or truth by using words with a double meaning: »

a legal quibble. To a plain understanding his objections seem to be mere quibbles (Macaulay).

 SYNONYM(S): equivocation.
2. a play upon words; pun: »

It was very natural…that the common people, by a quibble…should call the proposed “Moderation” the “Murderation” (John L. Motley).

–v.i.
to evade the point or the truth by twisting the meaning of words: »

He was not averse to quibbling with [the] Department of Justice attorney over whether an associate in the rights congress was known as Marjorie Robinson or Margaret Robinson (New York Times). Oh, Miss Lucretia, who pride yourself on your plain speaking, that you should be caught quibbling! (Winston Churchill).

╂[apparently, diminutive < obsolete quib quip < Latin quibus, dative and ablative plural of quī who, which (because it was much used in legal jargon)]
–quib´bling|ly, adverb.

Useful english dictionary. 2012.

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Look at other dictionaries:

  • quib|ble|some — «KWIHB uhl suhm», adjective. tending to evade or confuse the real point or truth in petty ways: »Strauss can be evasive, quibblesome and not above beclouding a point with big handfuls of debater s dust (Time) …   Useful english dictionary

  • quib — quib·bler; quib·ble; quib·bling·ly; …   English syllables

  • quib´bling|ly — quib|ble «KWIHB uhl», noun, verb, bled, bling. –n. 1. an unfair and petty evasion of the point or truth by using words with a double meaning: »a legal quibble. To a plain understanding his objections seem to be mere quibbles (Macaulay).… …   Useful english dictionary

  • ble — ab·di·ca·ble; abom·i·na·ble; abus·a·ble; ac·ces·si·ble; ac·com·mo·da·ble; ac·cost·a·ble; ac·cu·mu·la·ble; ac·cus·a·ble; ace·to·sol·u·ble; achie·va·ble; acid·i·fi·a·ble; ac·knowl·edge·a·ble; act·a·ble; ac·ti·va·ble; ac·tu·al·iz·a·ble; add·a·ble;… …   English syllables

  • quibble — quib·ble …   English syllables

  • quibble — quib•ble [[t]ˈkwɪb əl[/t]] n. v. bled, bling 1) a petty or carping criticism 2) an instance of the use of ambiguous, deceptive, or irrelevant language or arguments to evade a point at issue 3) to argue or complain about trivial matters; bicker,… …   From formal English to slang

  • Quibble — Quib|ble [kwɪbl], das; s, s [engl. quibble, wahrsch. Vkl. von älter engl. quib < lat. quibus, Dat. od. Ablativ Pl. von: qui = welcher; der] (veraltet): a) spitzfindige Ausflucht; b) [sophistisches, witziges] Wortspiel …   Universal-Lexikon

  • quibble — quib|ble1 [ kwıbl ] verb intransitive to argue or complain about things that are not important quibble quib|ble 2 [ kwıbl ] noun count a complaint or criticism about something that is not important …   Usage of the words and phrases in modern English

  • Quibble — Quib|ble [kwibl̩] das; s, s <aus engl. quibble »Spitzfindigkeit« zu to quibble »streiten«> (veraltet) a) spitzfindige Ausflucht; b) [sophistisches, witziges] Wortspiel …   Das große Fremdwörterbuch

  • Quibble — Quib ble, n. [Probably fr. quib, quip, but influenced by quillet, or quiddity.] 1. A shift or turn from the point in question; a trifling or evasive distinction; an evasion; a cavil. [1913 Webster] Quibbles have no place in the search after truth …   The Collaborative International Dictionary of English

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