Contention and Dissension

Contention

Contention noun - An earnest effort for superiority or victory over another.
Usage example: several actresses seem to be in heated contention for the title of “worst dressed”

Dissension is a synonym for contention in discord topic. In some cases you can use "Dissension" instead a noun "Contention", when it comes to topics like contest, conflict, dispute, anarchy. popular alternative

Dissension

Dissension noun - A lack of agreement or harmony.
Usage example: religious dissension threatened to split the colony

Contention is a synonym for dissension in conflict topic. You can use "Contention" instead a noun "Dissension", if it concerns topics such as discord, contest, argument, disagreement. popular alternative

Nearby Word: dissent

How words are described

political political contention political dissension
Cite this Source
Dissension and Contention. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 21, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/contention/dissension
Contention & Dissension. N.p., 2016. Web. 21 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/contention/dissension>.
Dissension or Contention. 2016. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/contention/dissension.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "contention" and "dissension" have occurred on timeline