Contentious
Contentious adjective - Feeling or displaying eagerness to fight.
Usage example: the Tartars were a contentious people who terrorized much of Asia and eastern Europe during the Middle Ages
Prickly and contentious are semantically related. In some cases you can use "Prickly" instead an adjective "Contentious".
Nearby Word: contention
Prickly
Prickly adjective - Easily irritated or annoyed.
Usage example: she dreaded having to deal with her prickly boss
Contentious and prickly are semantically related. Sometimes you can use "Contentious" instead an adjective "Prickly".
Mutual synonyms
Related pairs
- irritable and contentious
- irritable and prickly
- difficult and contentious
- difficult and prickly
- ill-tempered and contentious
- ill-tempered and prickly
- disagreeable and contentious
- disagreeable and prickly
- surly and contentious
- surly and prickly
- testy and contentious
- testy and prickly
- touchy and contentious
- touchy and prickly
Cite this Source
Prickly and Contentious. (2016). Retrieved 2026, August 16, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/contentious/prickly
Contentious & Prickly. N.p., 2016. Web. 16 Aug. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/contentious/prickly>.
Prickly or Contentious. 2016. Accessed August 16, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/contentious/prickly.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "contentious" and "prickly" have occurred on timeline