contention

noun con·ten·tion \kən-ˈten(t)-shən\

: something (such as a belief, opinion, or idea) that is argued or stated

: anger and disagreement

: a situation in which you have a chance to win something that you are trying to win

Full Definition of CONTENTION

: an act or instance of contending

: a point advanced or maintained in a debate or argument

: rivalry, competition

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Examples of CONTENTION

Tiger Woods splashed his way into contention in the New Zealand Open … shooting a four under par to close within six strokes of the lead. —New York Times, 13 Jan. 2002
The issues behind the protest are the usual bones of collective-bargaining contention: pay increases, vacation time, union membership. —Louis Menand, New Yorker, 17 & 24 June 2002
Science, and academic scholarship in general, the contention these days goes, is too subjective. Some even allege it's entirely subjective, as is, they say, history. —Carl Sagan, The Demon-Haunted World, 1996
All quotes from QDB.
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Origin of CONTENTION

Middle English contencioun, from Anglo-French cuntenciun, from Latin contention-, contentio, from contendere

First Known Use: 14th century

Synonym Discussion of CONTENTION

discord, strife, conflict, contention, dissension, variance mean a state or condition marked by a lack of agreement or harmony. discord implies an intrinsic or essential lack of harmony producing quarreling, factiousness, or antagonism <a political party long racked by discord>. strife emphasizes a struggle for superiority rather than the incongruity or incompatibility of the persons or things involved <during his brief reign the empire was never free of civil strife>. conflict usually stresses the action of forces in opposition but in static applications implies an irreconcilability as of duties or desires <the conflict of freedom and responsibility>. contention applies to strife or competition that shows itself in quarreling, disputing, or controversy <several points of contention about the new zoning law>. dissension implies strife or discord and stresses a division into factions <religious dissension threatened to split the colony>. variance implies a clash between persons or things owing to a difference in nature, opinion, or interest <cultural variances that work against a national identity>.