as in bickering
to express different opinions about something often angrily
a town meeting at which local residents wrangled for hours about property taxes
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Recent Examples of wrangling
Expect some wrangling over who gets to buy the Jean Prouvé aluminum sideboard at the Laffanour booth.
—
Nate Freeman, Vanity Fair, 15 May 2026
Adjusting to feeling sticky and sweaty and wrangling your AC unit into the window is hard enough.
—Kara Nesvig, Allure, 14 May 2026
The seven states are wrangling over who should reduce water use and by how much during a drought that's lasted more than two decades.
—ABC News, 8 May 2026
Washington — Tension is building among the policymakers tasked with wrangling inflation as the economic effects of the US-Israeli war with Iran broaden.
—Bryan Mena, CNN Money, 7 May 2026
Above all, Munden and his crew have done a fine job of wrangling good work from masses of kids, some quite little, in what must have been challenging conditions.
—Robert Lloyd, Boston Herald, 7 May 2026
Above all, Munden and his crew have done a fine job of wrangling good work from masses of kids, some quite little, in what must have been challenging conditions.
—Television Critic, Los Angeles Times, 4 May 2026
As a longtime trustee of The Met, Condé Nast’s chief content officer, and Vogue’s global editorial director, Wintour plays an integral role in wrangling donors, celebrities and designers to to the blowout event.
—Rosemary Feitelberg, Footwear News, 4 May 2026
After years of wrangling, Congress did finally pass the Judges Act of 2024, which would have added 66 new federal judgeships, including several for the Eastern District.
—Sharon Bernstein, Sacbee.com, 24 Apr. 2026
Nate Freeman, Vanity Fair, 15 May 2026
Adjusting to feeling sticky and sweaty and wrangling your AC unit into the window is hard enough.
—Kara Nesvig, Allure, 14 May 2026
The seven states are wrangling over who should reduce water use and by how much during a drought that's lasted more than two decades.
—ABC News, 8 May 2026
Washington — Tension is building among the policymakers tasked with wrangling inflation as the economic effects of the US-Israeli war with Iran broaden.
—Bryan Mena, CNN Money, 7 May 2026
Above all, Munden and his crew have done a fine job of wrangling good work from masses of kids, some quite little, in what must have been challenging conditions.
—Robert Lloyd, Boston Herald, 7 May 2026
Above all, Munden and his crew have done a fine job of wrangling good work from masses of kids, some quite little, in what must have been challenging conditions.
—Television Critic, Los Angeles Times, 4 May 2026
As a longtime trustee of The Met, Condé Nast’s chief content officer, and Vogue’s global editorial director, Wintour plays an integral role in wrangling donors, celebrities and designers to to the blowout event.
—Rosemary Feitelberg, Footwear News, 4 May 2026
After years of wrangling, Congress did finally pass the Judges Act of 2024, which would have added 66 new federal judgeships, including several for the Eastern District.
—Sharon Bernstein, Sacbee.com, 24 Apr. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wrangling
Verb
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Since then, showrunner Tim Minear and the rest of the writers have played up the actors' natural chemistry, playing into both the characters' bickering dynamic and their willingness to do anything, including risking their lives, for one another.—
Sabienna Bowman,
PEOPLE,
9 May 2026
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The two get to bickering about her terrible track record, with Dennis hilariously failing to realize that this accusation includes him among the questionable men.—
Ile-Ife Okantah,
Vulture,
27 Apr. 2026
Verb
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In recent years, a few prominent detransitioners, including Chloe Cole and Prisha Mosley, have advocated for restrictions on transition care for minors, arguing in lawsuits against doctors who treated them that their care was too easy to access and that doctors failed them.—
Jo Yurcaba,
NBC news,
16 May 2026
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James Ward During the debate, Republican candidate Steve Hilton said that only a small percentage of California has been developed for housing, arguing that the state should focus on building homes on undeveloped land rather than increasing density in existing cities.—
James Ward,
USA Today,
15 May 2026
Verb
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After a limp 2-0 defeat at Lorient in mid-April, Benatia criticised the players for a lack of fighting spirit.—
Tom Williams,
New York Times,
17 May 2026
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Democrats are also fighting among themselves.—
Amy Davidson Sorkin,
New Yorker,
17 May 2026
Verb
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The lack of money has, at times, led to quarrelling between the services - most notably pitting the navy against the army and the Royal Air Force.—
Ian King,
CNBC,
22 Apr. 2026
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Police said witness accounts indicate that the couple arrived at Zuri Hotel in Zanzibar on April 4 and had been quarreling frequently until the night of April 8, when hotel management separated them and asked McCann to move to a separate villa about a 10-minute walk away.—
ABC News,
ABC News,
16 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Wrangling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wrangling. Accessed 20 May. 2026.
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