1
as in aggressive
feeling or displaying eagerness to fight
a long history of little wars waged by the disputatious countries occupying that European peninsula
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in controversial
given to arguing
a disputatious professor who could give you an argument on just about anything
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in contentious
relating to or causing the expression of opposing opinions
dismayed at the prospect of enduring another disputatious meeting of the school board
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of disputatious
The film shows the occasionally disputatious relationship between Marvin and her grandparents, who raised her.
—
Matthew Carey, Deadline, 12 Jan. 2025
Hoback followed Back to a Bitcoin conference in Riga, Latvia, where Back introduced him to one of his younger protégés, a prominent if disputatious Bitcoin developer named Peter Todd.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, The New Yorker, 9 Oct. 2024
This disputatious sociopolitical drama is cunningly packaged as a romantic comedy.
—Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 23 May 2024
Still, even by these disputatious standards, the arguments that have been carrying on around Amherst Regional Middle School, or ARMS, have been vociferous.
—Jessica Winter, The New Yorker, 3 Apr. 2024
The 1990s were especially disputatious; civil wars arose on multiple continents, as did major wars in Europe and Africa.
—Paul Poast, The Atlantic, 17 Nov. 2023
Hans Küng, a Roman Catholic theologian and priest whose brilliantly disputatious, lucidly expressed thoughts in more than 50 books and countless speeches advanced ecumenism and provoked the Vatican to censure him, died on Tuesday at his home in Tübingen, Germany.
—New York Times, 6 Apr. 2021
Mercurial, determined, needy, disputatious—the moods more so than seasons of Acker’s life were rapid, and any biography is bound to contradict and complement and hone the myths that continue to attract us to her writing and her symbol.
—Liz Sullivan, Hazlitt, 5 Dec. 2022
Today’s disputatious conservatives are leading our latest effort to conjoin individual freedom and collective purpose.
—Christopher Demuth, WSJ, 18 Nov. 2022
Matthew Carey, Deadline, 12 Jan. 2025
Hoback followed Back to a Bitcoin conference in Riga, Latvia, where Back introduced him to one of his younger protégés, a prominent if disputatious Bitcoin developer named Peter Todd.
—Gideon Lewis-Kraus, The New Yorker, 9 Oct. 2024
This disputatious sociopolitical drama is cunningly packaged as a romantic comedy.
—Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 23 May 2024
Still, even by these disputatious standards, the arguments that have been carrying on around Amherst Regional Middle School, or ARMS, have been vociferous.
—Jessica Winter, The New Yorker, 3 Apr. 2024
The 1990s were especially disputatious; civil wars arose on multiple continents, as did major wars in Europe and Africa.
—Paul Poast, The Atlantic, 17 Nov. 2023
Hans Küng, a Roman Catholic theologian and priest whose brilliantly disputatious, lucidly expressed thoughts in more than 50 books and countless speeches advanced ecumenism and provoked the Vatican to censure him, died on Tuesday at his home in Tübingen, Germany.
—New York Times, 6 Apr. 2021
Mercurial, determined, needy, disputatious—the moods more so than seasons of Acker’s life were rapid, and any biography is bound to contradict and complement and hone the myths that continue to attract us to her writing and her symbol.
—Liz Sullivan, Hazlitt, 5 Dec. 2022
Today’s disputatious conservatives are leading our latest effort to conjoin individual freedom and collective purpose.
—Christopher Demuth, WSJ, 18 Nov. 2022
Recent Examples of Synonyms for disputatious
Adjective
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With how aggressive Commanders head coach Dan Quinn has been on fourth down, Fangio has to treat third down like second down.—
Ted Nguyen,
The Athletic,
23 Jan. 2025
-
So far, investors have been relieved President Donald Trump has backed away from aggressive, across-the-board tariffs during his first days in office.—
Medora Lee,
USA TODAY,
23 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
Several House and Senate Democrats supported the passage of the Laken Riley Act despite the bill’s controversial measures.—
Stuart Anderson,
Forbes,
19 Jan. 2025
-
The Cubs kept his access time brief, knowing he would be asked about the controversial subject.—
Paul Sullivan,
Chicago Tribune,
18 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
The loud and contentious debate about whether Indiana and SMU deserved CFP at-large bids overshadowed the reality of postseason football in both college and the NFL.—
Scott Dochterman,
The Athletic,
18 Jan. 2025
-
President Joe Biden prioritized student loan forgiveness during his term, introducing broad and contentious programs—challenged by his opponents in the courts—to relieve people of large chunks of their college debt.—
David Faris,
Newsweek,
18 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
Three Israeli hostages were released to the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) on Sunday following a ceasefire deal between Israel and the militant group Hamas.—
Rachel Scully,
The Hill,
19 Jan. 2025
-
Palestinian statehood remains very difficult question for Israel to answer, pushed further away by the October 7 attacks and 15 months of brutal war in Gaza against Palestinian militant group Hamas.—
Ellie Cook,
Newsweek,
19 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
Instead, she was hounded out of the classroom by authorities hostile to Western literature.—
Arash Azizi,
The Atlantic,
26 Jan. 2025
-
Last year, Trump's predecessor Joe Biden fired the inspector general of the U.S. Railroad Retirement Board, after an investigation found the official had created a hostile work environment.—
Riley Beggin,
USA TODAY,
25 Jan. 2025
Adjective
-
In the previous three years alone, the police had responded to a dozen incidents featuring the quarrelsome man.—
Photographs Todd Heisler,
New York Times,
19 May 2024
-
Stereophonic could be called a workplace drama, a quarrelsome family play or even an extended hangout, as much a vibe as a story.—
David Rooney,
The Hollywood Reporter,
3 Sep. 2019
Adjective
-
By the end, Liverpool’s players seemed tired and Klopp was irritable, clearly in need of a rest.—
Simon Hughes,
The Athletic,
20 Jan. 2025
-
The trio’s sixth record is charmingly irritable in both of its moods: hopped up on fluffy coffee while cracking baseball jokes, or dragging out downbeats and lamenting power structures to goad listeners with mounting anticipation.—
Madison Bloom,
Pitchfork,
4 Dec. 2024
Adjective
-
Coaches will tell you of a character who could be grumpy or stubborn, but also of someone who needed faith shown in him.—
The Athletic UK Staff,
The Athletic,
24 Jan. 2025
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Thanks to its impressive staying power, this eyeliner can be a bit stubborn to remove.—
Siena Gagliano,
Allure,
24 Jan. 2025
Thesaurus Entries Near disputatious
Cite this Entry
“Disputatious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/disputatious. Accessed 1 Feb. 2025.
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