Synonyms for contentious
kənˈtɛn ʃəscon·tentious

English Synonyms and AntonymsRate these synonyms:5.0 / 1 vote

1. contentious

   Synonyms:
   adverse, alienated, antagonistic, bellicose, belligerent, cold, disaffected, distant, estranged, frigid, hostile, ill-disposed, indifferent, inimical, unfriendly, unkind, warlike

   Antonyms:
   accessible, affable, affectionate, amicable, brotherly, companionable, complaisant, cordial, favorable, fond, friendly, genial, hearty, kind, kindly, loving, neighborly, sociable, social, tender, well-disposed

Complete Dictionary of Synonyms and AntonymsRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. contentious

   Synonyms:
   litigious, perverse, wayward, splenetic, cantankerous, exceptions

   Antonyms:
   pacific, obliging, considerate, obsequious, accommodating, easy

Princeton's WordNetRate these synonyms:3.0 / 1 vote

1. contentious, combative, disputatious, disputative, litigiousadjective

   inclined or showing an inclination to dispute or disagree, even to engage in law suits

   "a style described as abrasive and contentious"; "a disputatious lawyer"; "a litigious and acrimonious spirit"

   Synonyms:
   bellicose, agonistic, battleful, agonistical, litigious, disputative, combative, disputatious

   Antonyms:
   unargumentative, uncontroversial, noncontroversial

2. contentiousadjective

   involving or likely to cause controversy

   "a central and contentious element of the book"- Tim W.Ferfuson

   Synonyms:
   litigious, disputatious, combative, disputative

   Antonyms:
   unargumentative, uncontroversial, noncontroversial

Editors ContributionRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. propensity to fight

   tending to frequently contend

   you are a contentious person. the vandals were a contentious people.

   Submitted by rinat on August 11, 2019  

Dictionary of English SynonymesRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. contentiousadjective

   Synonyms:
   quarrelsome, cross, petulant, perverse

2. contentiousadjective

   Synonyms:
   disputatious, captious, cavilling

Synonyms, Antonyms & Associated WordsRate these synonyms:0.0 / 0 votes

1. contentiousadjective

   Synonyms:
   disputatious, litigious, quarrelsome, dissentious, polemical

PPDB, the paraphrase databaseRate these paraphrases:0.0 / 0 votes

1. List of paraphrases for "contentious":

   controversial, disputed, contested, litigious, debatable, questionable, polemical, thorny, confrontational, conflicting

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How to use contentious in a sentence?

1. Paul Renne:

   The debate has been contentious, now it's time to stop dismissing one cause or the other. They clearly happened at the same time and both contributed.

2. Richard Peck:

   Would we be here in the absence of U.S. sanctions law, and ... our response is no, in a typical case, double criminality is not contentious. This case, however, is founded on an allegation of breach of U.S. sanctions, sanctions which Canada has expressly repudiated.

3. Peter Gleick:

   This seems to be a confused attempt to conflate the terrible California wildfires with our always contentious debates over water, part of what he said implied there wasn't enough water to fight the fires in California because of our water policies -- which is complete nonsense. There's plenty of water to fight the fires. We don't even use that much water to fight the fires, but there's plenty. Three of the state's largest bodies of water are very close to these fires. It's just ridiculous.

4. Kevin Sumption:

   I am satisfied that this is the final resting place of one of the most important and contentious vessels in Australia’s maritime history.

5. James Kohm:

   At several points we walked out or threatened to walk out, it was contentious, but it was professional and adult.