argumentnoun [ C or U ]
uk/ˈɑːɡ.jə.mənt/us/ˈɑːrɡ.jə.mənt/argument noun [ C or U ] (DISAGREEMENT)
B1 a disagreement, or the process of disagreeing:
The children had an argument about/over what game to play.
He got into an argument with Jeff in the pub last night.
A decision was finally made after some heated argument.
More examples
- Don't drag me into your argument! It's nothing to do with me.
- We were having a friendly argument about Green politics.
- It was a really nice day, spoilt only by a little argument in the car on the way home.
- We had a dreadful argument in the restaurant, but he phoned me the next day to apologize.
- We had an argument with our neighbours, and now they won't even talk to us.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Arguments & disagreements
- belligerent
- blow up
- bust up
- conflict
- confrontation
- contention
- counter-argument
- disharmony
- dispute
- dissonance
- feud
- fracas
- Mexican standoff
- quibble
- rivalry
- row 1
- shindig
- slanging match
- trouble
- tussle
See more results »
argument noun [ C or U ] (REASON)
B2 a reason or reasons why you support or oppose an idea or suggestion, or the process of explaining these reasons:
Now that we've heard all the arguments for and against the proposal, let's vote on it.
[ + that ] Her husband was not convinced by her argument that they needed a bigger house.
I don't think that's a very strong/convincing/powerful argument.
The central argument (= main point) of the book is that some of the plays were not written by Shakespeare.
More examples
- The essence of his argument was that education should continue throughout life.
- Could you go over the main points of your argument again, Professor?
- He is impervious to criticism and rational argument.
- Students need the ability to construct a logical argument.
- I'll just summarize the main points of the argument in a few words if I may.