Cavillation

/kævɪˈleɪʃən/ noun

Definition

The act of making petty objections or the practice of caviling; unnecessary fault-finding.

Etymology

Formed from Latin 'cavillatio,' the noun form of 'cavillari' (to cavil), using the Latin suffix '-tion' which indicates actions or processes. This is a more formal or archaic variant than 'caviling.'

Kelly Says

Cavillation is the fancy Latin-derived word for caviling—English often has two versions of the same concept, one from Germanic roots (cavil) and one from Romance roots (cavillation)!

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