argle-bargle

English

Etymology

First documented in English in 1822, from Scots (where first recorded in 1808),^[1][2][3][4] from earlier argle (“argue obstinately, wrangle”) used in English since 16th century, presumably from argue +‎ -le (“frequentative”), though possibly from Old Norse (Suio-Gothic) ierga^[2] – possibly influenced by haggle^[5] – plus rhyming reduplication, possibly from bargain, found in early variant aurgle-bargain (1720).^[4][6]

Noun

argle-bargle (countable and uncountable, plural argle-bargles)

1. (slang) A verbal argument.
   • 1992, Rebecca Ward, Grand Deception, page 43:

     Wendell and I have had our share of argle-bargles about the morality of hunting.

   • 2013, United States v. Windsor, 544 U.S. 744, 799 (2013) (Scalia, J., dissenting)

     As I have said, the real rationale of today’s opinion, whatever disappearing trail of its legalistic argle-bargle one chooses to follow, is that DOMA is motivated by '"bare . . . desire to harm"' couples in same-sex marriages.

Verb

argle-bargle (third-person singular simple present argle-bargles, present participle argle-bargling, simple past and past participle argle-bargled)

1. (slang) To argue.
   • 1886 May 1 – July 31, Robert Louis Stevenson, “The Captain Knuckles Under”, in Kidnapped, being Memoirs of the Adventures of David Balfour in the Year 1751: […], London; Paris: Cassell & Company, published 1886, →OCLC, page 97:

     Last night ye haggled and argle-bargled like an apple-wife; and then passed me your word, and gave me your hand to back it; and ye ken very well what was the upshot. Be damned to your word!

Synonyms

• wringle-wrangle

Derived terms

• argle-bargle morble whoosh

Related terms

• argie-bargie
• argy-bargy
• argol-bargol

References

1. Douglas Harper (2001–2024) “argle”, in Online Etymology Dictionary.
2. John Jamieson, Etymological Dictionary of the Scottish Tongue. p. 82
3. “Scalia's argle-bargle”, Ben Zimmer, Language Log, June 27, 2013
4. Words in the Courtroom, from Mobspeak to "Argle-Bargle", Ben Zimmer, Word Routes, June 27, 2013
5. Word Detective, Issue of January 5, 2006, “Put up your duke's.”, Evan Morris.
6. “But ’tis a Daffin to debate, / And aurgle-bargain with our Fate.” —Allan Ramsay, Poems, “The Rise and Fall of Stocks, 1720. An Epistle to the Right Honorable my Lord Ramsay.”, p. 270