What does quarrelled mean?
“Quarrelled” is the past tense of “to quarrel,” meaning to have a serious disagreement, often involving anger, argument, or hostility. It is used when describing a dispute between people: one may say that friends quarrelled over money, that a couple quarrelled about household responsibilities, or that two politicians quarrelled in public. The spelling follows the usual British-versus-American pattern: “quarrelled” is standard in British English, while “quarreled” is standard in American English. The word is more emotionally charged than simply “disagreed,” suggesting conflict rather than a calm difference of opinion. As a past-tense verb, it usually takes “with” to identify the other person involved, as in “She quarrelled with her brother,” although forms such as “quarrel over” and “quarrel about” are also common.
verbTo engage in a disagreement or argument, especially one marked by anger or hostility. The past-tense form is used with the subject of the argument, as in “They quarrelled,” or with another person as the object, as in “She quarrelled with him.”
- To have a disagreement or argument with someone, especially in an angry or hostile way.
"The neighbours quarrelled over the noise late into the night."
"They quarrelled about who should pay for the damage."
"The two candidates quarrelled fiercely during the televised debate."
One small disagreement can turn into a “quarrel” when it becomes personal, noisy, or prolonged—and British and American spelling differ by just one “l.”
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does quarrelled come from?
“Quarrel” comes through Middle English from Old French quarrel, which in turn developed from Latin quarrel, a word associated with dispute or litigation. The verb “to quarrel” has long meant to argue or contend, and the modern past-tense form “quarrelled” reflects the regular verb inflection. The related noun “quarrel” and forms such as “quarreller” belong to the same word family.
Related word forms
How quarrelled is actually used
This is the past-tense form of “quarrel,” with two l’s in British spelling and one in American spelling. It is commonly transitive with “with,” although it can also be used intransitively; the construction “quarrel someone” is less common and can sound informal or nonstandard.
Easily confused with quarrelled
“Quarrel” is the standard noun and base form meaning an argument or dispute, while “quarrelled” is specifically the past tense of the verb “to quarrel.”
“Quarrel” concerns an argument or dispute, whereas “square” is a geometric shape or a public area surrounded by buildings.