wrangle 1 of 2

wrangle

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verb

Synonym Chooser

How does the noun wrangle contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of wrangle are altercation, quarrel, and squabble. While all these words mean "a noisy dispute usually marked by anger," wrangle suggests undignified and often futile disputation with a noisy insistence on differing opinions.

wrangle interminably about small issues

When could altercation be used to replace wrangle?

The synonyms altercation and wrangle are sometimes interchangeable, but altercation implies fighting with words as the chief weapon, although it may also connote blows.

a loud public altercation

When can quarrel be used instead of wrangle?

The words quarrel and wrangle are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, quarrel implies heated verbal contention, stressing strained or severed relations which may persist beyond the contention.

a quarrel nearly destroyed the relationship

When would squabble be a good substitute for wrangle?

Although the words squabble and wrangle have much in common, squabble stresses childish and unseemly dispute over petty matters, but it need not imply bitterness or anger.

a brief squabble over what to do next

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of wrangle
Noun
Despite—or perhaps because of—their differences, these two women help each other wrangle the challenges around them to find a way forward, be their best selves, and fulfill their dreams. Jennifer Maas, Variety, 24 June 2025 Perkins is particularly brilliant on domestic moments, including the daily wrangle that is raising small children. The New Yorker, New Yorker, 18 June 2025
Verb
Colombia and Peru have often wrangled over their frontier. John Otis, NPR, 7 Sep. 2025 Stella Budelli, 11, wrangled her goat onto a stage, and watched as a representative from Les Schwab Tire Center won her animal. Ishani Desai, Sacbee.com, 6 Sep. 2025 See All Example Sentences for wrangle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wrangle
Noun
  • The dispute was heard by an arbitrator (and not a judge) because, per SPAC language and accompanying NBPA regulations, player-agent disputes are subject to arbitration.
    Michael McCann, Sportico.com, 12 Sep. 2025
  • The dishwasher was made in America, though there is some dispute over who did it.
    Jeremy Lott, The Washington Examiner, 12 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Jennifer Aniston’s Alex Levy, Reese Witherspoon’s Bradley Jackson, and the other members of The Morning Show’s newsroom and its network are once again bickering and backstabbing.
    Emma Alpern, Vulture, 11 Sep. 2025
  • Coaches are also bickering about money, a topic that would have felt out of place 10 years ago.
    Eben Novy-Williams, Sportico.com, 5 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • However, lovers’ quarrels or difficulty dealing with children (hissy fits or meltdowns) might occur.
    Georgia Nicols, Denver Post, 16 Sep. 2025
  • The outcome of that long-simmering family quarrel is never really in much doubt, but there are still a few neat surprises involving a couple of rare bottles of whiskey and the fate of two family businesses.
    Stephen Farber, HollywoodReporter, 15 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Penske’s complaint argues that practice isn’t a fair exchange and has caused significant financial harm, with the company’s affiliate revenue falling by more than a third (as a result of Google’s AI Overviews co-opting traffic that might have otherwise gone to Penske outlets).
    Andy Meek, Forbes.com, 15 Sep. 2025
  • Critics and rights groups argued that both the ban and the bill function as tools for censorship, threatening freedom of expression, press freedom and fundamental rights.
    Nir Kshetri, The Conversation, 14 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • Yet two of the first three weekends on CU’s fight card have resembled the Kansas and Kansas State losses of 2024.
    Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 13 Sep. 2025
  • Naoya Inoue, who is one of the top pound-for-pound fighters and 30-0, is defending his super bantamweight title on Sunday in Japan, just hours after Álvarez and Crawford fight.
    Sarah Shephard, New York Times, 13 Sep. 2025
Verb
  • Mulroney, Ackerman, Snow, and Newman turn this story of spatting WAGS into an explosive, addictive watch.
    CT Jones, Rolling Stone, 11 Aug. 2025
  • Preparation has cultural and regional variations, but the seed is usually chewed with slaked lime and betel leaves, and chewing releases a red juice that's often then spat out.
    New Atlas, New Atlas, 4 Aug. 2025
Noun
  • Student accused of mocking Charlie Kirk death Camryn Giselle Booker, a student at Texas Tech University, was arrested on charges of assault after an altercation with students mourning the death of Charlie Kirk.
    Amanda Castro Hannah Parry Shane Croucher, MSNBC Newsweek, 15 Sep. 2025
  • Campus police arrested a student at Texas Tech University in connection to an altercation with students who were mourning the death of Charlie Kirk, officials confirmed.
    Natalie Neysa Alund, USA Today, 15 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • The September 12 report shared that RBW had actually fired Lee in August, citing declining profitability, management difficulties, and disagreements over new artist direction.
    Jeff Benjamin, Forbes.com, 13 Sep. 2025
  • Its first-ever color feature, In the Shadow of Honor, which was going to be filmed in Indonesia, was canceled due to disagreements between the two countries related to colonial war reparations.
    Michael Taube, The Washington Examiner, 12 Sep. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Wrangle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wrangle. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.

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