[1] : The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

cavil \cav"il\ ka^v"i^l, v. i. imp.  p. p. caviled or
   cavilled; p. pr.  vb. n. caviling or cavilling. l.
   cavillari to practice jesting, to censure, fr. cavilla
   bantering jests, sophistry: cf. of. caviller.
   to raise captious and frivolous objections; to find fault
   without good reason.
   1913 webster

         you do not well in obstinacy
         to cavil in the course of this contract. --shak.
   1913 webster
see also:
caviled cavilled caviling cavilling 

[2] : The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

caviling \cav"iling\, a.
   disposed to cavil; finding fault without good reason. see
   captious.
   1913 webster

         his depreciatory and caviling criticism. --lewis.
   1913 webster
see also:
captious 

[3] : WordNet (r) 2.0

caviling
     adj : quibbling over insignificant details; "caviling pettifoggers
           and quiggling pleaders"-edmund burke; "her nagging and
           carping attack"; "thought her editor unnecessarily
           nitpicking"; "a pettifogging lawyer's mind"; "had no
           patience with quibbling critics" syn: carping, nitpicking,
            pettifogging, quibbling
see also:
carping nitpicking pettifogging quibbling 

[4] : Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

20 moby thesaurus words for "caviling":
   captious, carping, censorious, contrary, critic, demanding,
   exacting, faultfinding, finicky, fussy, hairsplitting,
   hypercritical, mean, niggling, nitpicking, overcritical, perverse,
   petty, picky, small

Caviling >> C Words
Caviling, definition of term: Caviling
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