contentious
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English
[edit]Etymology
[edit]From Middle French contentieux, from Latin contentiōsus (“quarrelsome, perverse”), from contentiō (“contention”), from contendere, past participle contentus (“to contend”). Equivalent to English contention + -ous.
Pronunciation
[edit]- IPA(key): /kənˈtɛn.ʃəs/
Audio (General Australian): (file) - Rhymes: -ɛnʃəs
Adjective
[edit]contentious (comparative more contentious, superlative most contentious)
- Marked by heated arguments or controversy.
- 2012 June 19, Phil McNulty, “England 1-0 Ukraine”, in BBC Sport[1]:
- Ukraine, however, will complain long and hard about a contentious second-half incident when Marko Devic's shot clearly crossed the line before it was scrambled away by John Terry, only for the officials to remain unmoved.
- Given to struggling with others out of jealousy or discord.
- 2020, Susanna Clarke, Piranesi, Bloomsbury, page 212:
- She was not a contentious person as the Other had been; she did not argue and contradict everything I said.
Synonyms
[edit]- See also Thesaurus:quarrelsome
- See also Thesaurus:combative
Derived terms
[edit]Related terms
[edit]Translations
[edit]marked by controversy
|
given to struggling
|
References
[edit]- “contentious”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
- “contentious”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.