Save Dispute For People

Save Dispute For People Save â€Å"Dispute† For People Save â€Å"Dispute† For People By Maeve Maddox The verb dispute, like contradict, connotes disagreement. Unlike contradict, dispute does not work equally well with human and nonhuman referents. The following â€Å"clickbait† headline illustrates what I mean: 13 Facts That Will Dispute The Person Who Says Reagan was a Great President Facts or people may contradict, but only people dispute. The verb dispute entered English from Old French in the thirteenth century with the meaning â€Å"to contend with opposing arguments; to debate or argue.† That remains the chief meaning. Another meaning is â€Å"to challenge.† Here are examples of correct usage: The people are tired of  political parties disputing among themselves, he says. How to dispute an error on your credit report Some Experts Dispute Claims Of Looming Doctor Shortage Scientists offered cash to dispute climate study Here are examples in which the verb dispute is used where contradict or another word or phrase would be more apt: There is no evidence in the record that will dispute the fact that Tiger Inn does not invite guest lecturers to speak on its premises. If a person strongly believes in something, any fact that will dispute their point will be automatically denied. The following example from a site belonging to a Spanish speaker seems to use dispute in the sense of contend or perhaps prevail: Fourth step, we must begin to interpret our strategy by thinking about  tactical  actions. These are  the concrete facts  that will dispute over the space of our adversary. I suspect that dispute may be going in the direction of an all-purpose synonym for contradict because it is shorter than most of the alternatives. Meanwhile, careful writers will think twice about who or what is doing the disputing and save the verb dispute for people. Synonyms for dispute in the sense of â€Å"to argue† or â€Å"to voice disagreement†: debate discuss exchange views quarrel disagree clash fall out wrangle bicker squabble Words and phrases that may be used with nonhuman referents in the sense of contradict or refute: contest [kon-TEST] disprove prove wrong prove false debunk discredit invalidate confute conflict with be at odds with be at variance with be inconsistent with run counter to disagree with Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Vocabulary category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:50 Synonyms for â€Å"Leader†English Grammar 101: Verb MoodContinue and "Continue on"