Basic Details
Word: Argumentative
Part of Speech: Adjective
Meaning: Often ready to argue or disagree, sometimes just for the sake of it.
Synonyms: quarrelsome, contrary, combative
Antonyms: agreeable, easy-going, peaceful
How to Spell Argumentative
Syllables: ar - gu - men - ta - tive
Tricky part: Argue loses its final e before ment, so it is argument, not arguement. After that, ative is added: argument + ative.
Watch out for: arguementative, argumantative, argumentitive
Memory tip: The e of argue gets lost in the argument and never comes back, so argumentative has no e between the u and the m.
Usage Examples
Example 1: My little cousin gets argumentative when he is sleepy.
Example 2: The argumentative customer refused to accept the shopkeeper's bill.
Example 3: Debating teaches you to disagree politely without becoming argumentative.
Fun Fact
Argumentative goes back to the Latin argumentum, which first meant a proof or a piece of evidence, from arguere, to make clear. An argument was once something that proved a point, not a quarrel.
Practise the CREST Way
Word Makeup
Only one of these root words takes the suffix ative to make a real word. Choose it.
a) fight
b) debate
c) quarrel
d) argument
Show answer
d) argument. Argument + ative makes argumentative; a person who quarrels is quarrelsome instead.
Word Connection
Choose the word opposite in meaning to argumentative as used in the sentence:
Rohit became argumentative when the umpire gave him out.
a) quarrelsome
b) combative
c) agreeable
d) contrary
Show answer
c) agreeable. An argumentative player wants to fight the decision, while an agreeable one accepts it calmly.
Word Cookie
Find the extra letter in the word:
arguementative
a) u
b) e
c) m
d) t
Show answer
b) e. The e after argu has to go: argue drops it before ment.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which description fits an argumentative person?
a) She rarely speaks at all.
b) She agrees quietly with everyone.
c) She disagrees with almost everything anyone says.
d) She sings in the school choir.
Show answer
c) She disagrees with almost everything anyone says.
2. Which word is closest in meaning to argumentative?
a) talkative
b) quarrelsome
c) generous
d) tiresome
Show answer
b) quarrelsome
