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
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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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The frantic, aggressive push to fire workers and gut spending has already upended dozens of lives across the Kansas City region, leaving disoriented ex-employees to try to pick up the pieces.—
Jonathan Shorman,
Kansas City Star,
28 Feb. 2025
-
State legislators have been trying for years to boost local education aid without weakening an aggressive savings program that’s been wiping out Connecticut’s debts faster than ever before.—
Jessika Harkay,
Hartford Courant,
28 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Later in the week, Stahl added another wrinkle to the controversial traffic stop.—
Charles Rabin and,
Miami Herald,
7 Mar. 2025
-
But to partially offset the cost, the House makes a different, highly controversial assumption: Extending the TCJA, improving government efficiency, and adopting unspecified changes to federal regulations would raise $2.6 trillion over the next 10 years by boosting economic growth.—
Howard Gleckman,
Forbes,
7 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
European stocks are heading for a higher open on Wednesday amid optimism that U.S. President Donald Trump’s 25% duties on Canada and Mexico could be relaxed, with investors also paying attention to the potential reform of Germany’s contentious debt brake system.—
Holly Ellyatt,
CNBC,
5 Mar. 2025
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President Donald Trump taunted Democrats and fueled new litigation against his contentious policies during his speech to Congress Tuesday while basking in the cheers and applause of fellow Republicans.—
Bart Jansen,
USA TODAY,
5 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
The militant group has said that the move would affect the remaining hostages as well.—
Wafaa Shurafa,
Los Angeles Times,
8 Mar. 2025
-
In December, a coalition of opposition fighters led by the Islamist militant group Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) took over cities and eventually Damascus as regime forces retreated.—
Jane Arraf,
NPR,
7 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
The set-up has grown increasingly hostile over time, and became an impassible roadblock when the Lerner family tried to sell the Nationals back in 2022.—
Scott Soshnick,
Sportico.com,
4 Mar. 2025
-
Prince overcame the hostile environment and kept TCU afloat during the first quarter when the Horned Frogs struggled to find their footing offensively.—
Steven Johnson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
3 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Not even Caplan, whose one-note portrayal of a quarrelsome congresswoman is enough to make one yearn for the subtleties and emotional shadings of Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.—
Graham Hillard,
Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government,
7 Mar. 2025
-
In 1254, King Edward I and Queen Eleanor of Castile were married at a very young age, and although Edward had a reputation for being arrogant and quarrelsome, the pair eventually fell deeply in love.—
Gulnaz Khan,
AFAR Media,
13 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Cold exposure is particularly helpful for those who have irritable skin through the constriction of blood vessels, alleviating swelling and flushes.—
Lucy Notarantonio,
Newsweek,
24 Feb. 2025
-
The elderly single mom, played with an irritable, bone-deep bitterness by Irish actor Fiona Shaw, has spent the past few years paralyzed by an illness no one can diagnose.—
Peter Debruge,
Variety,
14 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Another type of hyperpigmentation that kojic acid can help with is melasma—a stubborn and hard-to-treat skin condition characterized by splotchy, brown or grayish patches.—
Jenna Ryu,
SELF,
4 Mar. 2025
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Like this Fire sign, Drizella is unapologetically stubborn and impatience, believing she is entitled to nothing but the best.—
Valerie Mesa,
People.com,
4 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Disputatious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/disputatious. Accessed 13 Mar. 2025.
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