wrangle 1 of 2

wrangle

2 of 2

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
The development in Florida comes as the Trump administration wrangles with the federal courts. Jay Weaver, Miami Herald, 25 Apr. 2025 While the former is filled with hope, the latter is more spiritual and wrangles with the unknown. Derek Scancarelli, Forbes, 4 Mar. 2025
Verb
George Lucas Pitches Star Wars on the Carlton Terrace (1977) George Lucas, in Cannes on his own dime for the screening of THX 1138 in the Directors’ Fortnight, wrangled a 10-minute lunch meeting with UA CEO David Picker on the Carlton terrace. Scott Roxborough, HollywoodReporter, 19 May 2025 Ziff and Margouleff had lent eleven guitars, and Margouleff had also wrangled the instruments (and coöperation) of Jimmy Page, Keith Richards, Eric Clapton, and Eddie Van Halen. Nick Paumgarten, New Yorker, 19 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for wrangle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wrangle
Noun
  • Those CBAs also require that should there be a dispute as to whether the league, a club, a union, or a player abided by their obligations under the CBA, such dispute be settled through a confidential arbitration process.
    Chris Deubert, Forbes.com, 28 May 2025
  • The Supreme Court on May 27 declined to get involved in a dispute about mining on land sacred to the San Carlos Apache Tribe, a case that religious groups backed to test the scope of a 1993 federal law protecting religious freedom.
    Maureen Groppe, USA Today, 28 May 2025
Verb
  • In the film, Lawrence and her co-star Robert Pattinson proved worthy adversaries, who bicker and screw their way into emotional oblivion in Ramsay’s tense portrait of a woman undone.
    Matt Donnelly, Variety, 17 May 2025
  • Protesters shouted from the back of the room and lawmakers bickered.
    Eric Lipton, New York Times, 14 May 2025
Noun
  • The defense attorney suggested that Cassie’s rape allegation stemmed from a complicated quarrel playing out as their decade-plus relationship came to an end.
    Victoria Bekiempis, Vulture, 16 May 2025
  • Other great powers will have their territorial goals and quarrels and this does not normally concern you.
    Frank Lavin, Forbes.com, 4 May 2025
Verb
  • The moderates advocated for an increase to the SALT cap, currently set at $10,000, but argued that the $30,000 cap outlined in the package remained too low.
    Kaia Hubbard, CBS News, 22 May 2025
  • But the state’s attorney general, Gentner Drummond, sued and argued the state constitution did not allow for public funds to be spent for churches or the teaching of religion.
    David G. Savage, Los Angeles Times, 22 May 2025
Noun
  • The awards ceremony reception was being held outdoors when the fight between two adults led to the stabbing, a Fort Worth ISD spokesperson said in a statement.
    Shambhavi Rimal, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 22 May 2025
  • Even when cases of public console hacking have led to protracted legal fights—such as George Hotz's saga with the PS3 or Team Xecuter's Switch jailbreaks—console makers don't seem to have used technical means to completely disable offline functions for specific consoles.
    ArsTechnica, ArsTechnica, 22 May 2025
Verb
  • The first is that when U.S. soldiers returned from the war there, protesters spat upon them in disdain.
    Jonathan Zimmerman, Foreign Affairs, 19 May 2016
  • The flare comes after nearly a week of flares and coronal plasma ejections spat toward the planet that threatened disruptions to power and communications systems on Earth.
    Greg Wehner, Fox News, 15 May 2024
Noun
  • Jaques said officers at 7:49 a.m. on Sunday received a complaint from a woman who reported that someone was following her vehicle while waving a gun following an altercation at a local gas station.
    Justin Muszynski, Hartford Courant, 27 May 2025
  • The shooting stemmed from an altercation during a private Memorial Day weekend gathering on a charter boat in Little River, a community of about 11,000 people situated along the Intracoastal Waterway near the North Carolina state line, police said.
    Lauren Mascarenhas, CNN Money, 26 May 2025
Noun
  • The suit recounts numerous comments made by Trump and the White House attacking PBS’ content, to underscore the point that the defunding is motivated by disagreement over speech.
    Gene Maddaus, Variety, 30 May 2025
  • The question – at the center of disagreements over transgender athletes’ participation in sports – has echoed from high school running tracks to Olympic arenas as lawmakers and sports bodies face intense pressure to weigh in on a debate over what fair play looks like.
    Elizabeth Wolfe, CNN Money, 29 May 2025

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Wrangle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wrangle. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.

More from Merriam-Webster on wrangle

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!