hair-splitting

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

In his written judgement, Mr Justice Knowles said the grounds on which the panel had rejected the judge's application for relocation amounted to "semantic hair-splitting".

From BBC • Mar. 6, 2024

VOA’s stance has led to some intricate hair-splitting.

From Washington Times • Oct. 25, 2023

“I was a hair-splitting moralist, judgmental and proud,” he admits.

From Washington Post • Nov. 29, 2022

But in a sense, this is all just hair-splitting.

From Salon • Jun. 30, 2020

It is better, however, not to raise the question with beginners, since it seems to them like hair-splitting to no purpose.

From The Teaching of Geometry by Smith, David Eugene