Quarrel: English Vocabulary List

to let someone know that their bad behavior made one annoyed or angry

"I gave him a piece of my mind."

"The angry customer gave the rude shop assistant a piece of her mind and then stormed out of the store."

to no longer bother someone and leave them alone

"Get out of my face!"

"After the argument, he finally told his persistent neighbor to get out of his face."

to continuously fight or argue over someone or something

"They fight like cats and dogs."

"My siblings fight like cats and dogs over the smallest things, which drives our parents crazy."

to punish someone in a manner more violent or severe than they deserve

"The teacher came down on me like a ton of bricks."

"The teacher came down on the student like a ton of bricks when she caught him cheating on the important exam."

a subject over which people disagree

"Money is a bone of contention between them."

"The main bone of contention between the two neighbours was the fence that separated their properties."

to angrily reply or react to someone

"I asked a simple question and he bit my head off."

"I just asked a simple question so there is no need to bite my head off like that."

in serious disagreement with someone

"The two politicians are at loggerheads."

"The two neighbours have been at loggerheads over the property boundary for several years now."

used when two or more people, groups, or organizations fight or disagree with one another

"The cats were at each other's throats."

"The two brothers were at each other's throats constantly during the long car journey across the country."

(of two people, groups, countries, etc.) in a state of conflict or hostility toward each other

"The two brothers are at daggers drawn."

"The two business partners have been at daggers drawn ever since they disagreed about how to invest the company's profits."

to completely defeat someone, leaving them feeling overwhelmed or powerless

"The business world will chew you up and spit you out."

"The tough competition in this industry will chew you up and spit you out if you are not strong enough to handle it."

to criticize or punish someone very harshly

"Boss brought hammer down."

"The manager had to bring the hammer down on the team for their repeated tardiness."

(of people) to use their fists in order to hit each other during a fight or competition

"The two men traded punches hard."

"The two boxers traded punches for twelve rounds, but neither of them was willing to give up."

to say offensive, criticizing, or rude things to someone, particularly one's opponent, to make them less confident

"Stop talking trash about him."

"The two boxers talked trash to each other before the fight but one of them was knocked out in the first round."

used to indicate that a situation has reached a point where it is no longer tolerable or acceptable, and it is time for it to stop or change

"Enough is enough — I am not putting up with this anymore."

"After the third policy violation in a month, the director stood up and said enough is enough."

in a situation that is likely to cause a disagreement or fight

"They are on collision course."

"The two departments, with their conflicting objectives, seemed to be on a collision course."

to cause trouble or upset by saying or doing something that brings conflict into a peaceful situation

"He threw the cat among pigeons."

"The new policy threw the cat among the pigeons, causing confusion and anger among the employees."

in a situation in which someone is very upset or angry with one for having or not having done something

"I am in the dog house again."

"After forgetting their wedding anniversary he has been in the dog house with his wife for over a week now."

to put down or humiliate a person who is too proud or self-righteous

"He needs to be taken down a notch."

"The arrogant champion was taken down a notch when a young unknown boxer defeated him easily in the ring."

to engage in a verbal conflict by exchanging criticisms, insults, etc.

"They trade punches."

"The two politicians spent the entire debate trading punches instead of discussing substantive policy issues."