caviling 1 of 2

adjective

variants or cavilling
Definition of cavilingnext
as in critical
given to making or expressing unfavorable judgments about things a caviling theater critic who has yet to see a play she likes

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

caviling

2 of 2

verb

variants or cavilling
present participle of cavil
as in complaining
to make often peevish criticisms or objections about matters that are minor, unimportant, or irrelevant caviled for hours about a single sentence

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Examples Sentences

Recent Examples of Synonyms for caviling
  1. critical
  2. complaining
  3. captious
  4. hypercritical
  5. judicious
  6. whining
Adjective
  • Additionally, 25 percent of younger Americans pointed to housing costs as a critical area for government focus, while only 10 percent of those aged 60 and above shared this view.
    Kevin Lynn, Newsweek, 8 Jan. 2025
  • This data is critical for identifying high-risk areas and times, enabling authorities to implement targeted safety measures.
    Melissa Cristina Marquez, Forbes, 7 Jan. 2025
Definition of critical
Verb
  • The Buccaneers started complaining to the officials about fouls.
    CJ Moore, The Athletic, 8 Jan. 2025
  • That first-round pick became Merriman (although, the Giants aren't complaining).
    Ryan Morik, Fox News, 8 Jan. 2025
Definition of complaining
Adjective
  • So much of the new sobriety flex is anathema to the captious alcoholics of 12-step groups.
    Virginia Heffernan, Wired, 19 Apr. 2022
  • That a right-wing party traditionally captious about American patriotism did not react heatedly to evidence of Russian interference in US elections is bizarre.
    Darryl Pinckney, The New York Review of Books, 5 Nov. 2020
Definition of captious
Adjective
  • Especially as a woman online, a lot of people are so hypercritical of that sort of thing.
    Carly Thomas, The Hollywood Reporter, 2 Oct. 2024
  • Savvy and sophisticated, Vivian Kensington embodies Virgo's conservative and meticulous approach, which on the dark side, includes her hypercritical nature and tactical strategy to humiliate Elle Woods.
    Valerie Mesa, Peoplemag, 12 July 2024
Definition of hypercritical
Adjective
  • By judicious use of power conservation, as well as staying below the maximum theoretical throughput speeds of PCIe 5.0, the P510 attenuates the prodigious heat generated by its high-performance Gen 5 counterparts.
    PCMAG, PCMAG, 11 Jan. 2025
  • In these areas, judicious hyaluronic acid filler may still be the best bet for addressing volume loss.
    Jolene Edgar, Allure, 9 Jan. 2025
Definition of judicious
Verb
  • The whining about everyone else didn’t help, either.
    Brian Moylan, Vulture, 31 Dec. 2024
  • Stop whining and thank your lucky stars for having a job.
    Lance Eliot, Forbes, 27 Dec. 2024
Definition of whining
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Thesaurus Entries Near caviling

cavilers

caviling

cavils

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Cite this Entry

“Caviling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/caviling. Accessed 21 Jan. 2025.

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