cavil
noun
No English definition recorded for this entry.
L22054 on Wikidata ↗verb
No English definition recorded for this entry.
L22055 on Wikidata ↗Wiktionary
Pronunciation: /ˈkæv.əl/ / /ˈkæv.ɪl/
noun
Etymology: From Old French caviller (“mock, jest, rail”), from Latin cavillor (“jeer, mock, satirise, reason captiously”), from cavilla (“jeering, raillery, scoffing”); cognate with Italian cavillare, Portuguese cavillar, and Spanish cavilar; nominal usage developed within English from the original verbal usage.
- A petty or trivial objection or criticism.
“It is not worth while to spend your time in arguing against a cavil, but make him feel he is committing a sin to plead it, and thus enlist his conscience on your side.”
verb
Etymology: From Old French caviller (“mock, jest, rail”), from Latin cavillor (“jeer, mock, satirise, reason captiously”), from cavilla (“jeering, raillery, scoffing”); cognate with Italian cavillare, Portuguese cavillar, and Spanish cavilar; nominal usage developed within English from the original verbal usage.
- To criticise for petty or frivolous reasons.
“'Tis love you cavil at: I am not Love.”
“The provision, then, which we have here made is no other than Human Nature. Nor do I fear that my sensible reader, though most luxurious in his taste, will start, cavil, or be offended, because I have named but one article.”