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Bone of contention   /boʊn əv kəntˈɛnʃən/   Listen
Bone of contention

noun
1.
The subject of a dispute.






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"Bone of contention" Quotes from Famous Books



... address a sharp remonstrance and claim for indemnity to some pundit in authority; but perceiving that by such fishing in troubled waters I was the gainer of a golden-headed umbrella, fresh as a rose, I decided to accept the olive branch and bury the bone of contention. ...
— Baboo Jabberjee, B.A. • F. Anstey

... Austria and the immediate presence of the Swiss.' On the accession of Pius IX., the props, such as they were, which had prevented an earlier collapse of the Temporal Power, were either removed or rendered useless. The Swiss might as well have been disbanded at once as retained merely to be a bone of contention between the new government and the people, since it was understood that a vigorous use of their services would never be resorted to; while Austrian protection was transferred from the Pope to the disaffected party in the Church, ...
— The Liberation of Italy • Countess Evelyn Martinengo-Cesaresco

... who would prevent this battle degenerating into a furious strife between radical abolition and its opponents weigh this matter well. There are fearful elements at work, which may be neutralized, if we who fight for the Union will be wise betimes, and remove the bone of contention. ...
— Continental Monthly, Vol. I. February, 1862, No. II. - Devoted To Literature And National Policy • Various

... later relation to George Sand, the passion of a poet, Alfred Musset, rivalled his, so at this time he found a rival in the Polish poet, Julius Slovaki. The pretty, vivacious, and perhaps somewhat flirtatious girl, Comtesse Maria Wodzinska, was the bone of contention, or, rather, the "rag and the bone and the hank of ...
— The Love Affairs of Great Musicians, Volume 1 • Rupert Hughes

... member of the House of Peers in a journal, he used to make a motion against the printer for breach of privilege, summon him before the bar of the House, and have him heavily fined. The House of Commons followed suit. The old bone of contention, the reporting of the debates, was raked up again. There were then two giants of reporting, William Woodfall, who, from his wonderful retentive powers, was called by the sobriquet of Memory Woodfall, ...
— The Continental Monthly, Vol. 5, No. 5, May, 1864 - Devoted To Literature And National Policy • Various

... acquainted with Canadian history to be aware of the fact, that these unfortunate Clergy Reserves have been a bone of contention ever since they were set apart. I know how very inconvenient it is to repeal the Imperial Act which was intended to be a final settlement of the question; but I must candidly say I very much doubt whether you will be able to preserve the Colony if you retain it on the Statute Book. Even Lafontaine ...
— Letters and Journals of James, Eighth Earl of Elgin • James, Eighth Earl of Elgin

... though she had no share in these broils, had no objection to them, and as usual being diverted with this circumstance, she took occasion to joke with the Chevalier de Grammont, for having thrown this bone of contention among such competitors; and did not fail to give him, in the presence of the whole court, those praises which so magnificent a present deserved: "But how comes it," said she, "that you have no equipage yourself, though you are at so great an expense? for I am ...
— Marguerite de Navarre - Memoirs of Marguerite de Valois Queen of Navarre • Marguerite de Navarre

... the bearings of the question, and if they cannot resist effectually these encroachments of the Imperial Government, adopt the remaining alternative of saving themselves from an infliction, by giving up at once and entirely, the bone of contention between us. Thus only shall we disarm, if anything in reason or in nature can, our enemies of their slanderous weapons of offence, and secure in as far as possible, a speedy and safe return of peace and prosperity to the "distracted" colony.—Without this ...
— The Anti-Slavery Examiner, Omnibus • American Anti-Slavery Society

... Siamese Twins compose the next group. These remarkable brothers lived together in the greatest harmony, though there was always a bone of contention between them. They were never seen apart, such was their brotherly fondness. They married young, both being opposed to a single life. The short one is not quite so tall as his brother, although their ages are about the same. One ...
— Entertainments for Home, Church and School • Frederica Seeger

... objection to all these amendments. If our work here is to have any efficacy, we must adhere to the report. Why bring in another bone of contention? ...
— A Report of the Debates and Proceedings in the Secret Sessions of the Conference Convention • Lucius Eugene Chittenden

... lost all the power they had fondly hoped to acquire. The first meeting of the Board was held Dec. 15, Mr. Sargant being elected chairman and Mr. S.S. Lloyd vice-chairman. During the three years' reign of this Board the religious question was a continual bone of contention, the payment of school fees for the teaching of the Bible in denominational schools being denounced in the strongest of terms in and out of the Board-room by the "Irreconcileables," as the Nonconforming minority were termed. ...
— Showell's Dictionary of Birmingham - A History And Guide Arranged Alphabetically • Thomas T. Harman and Walter Showell

... made the sun some to heat up Kit's stomach?" she demanded scornfully, as she grabbed the little roly-poly bone of contention and marched off with her to finish dressing her on the front porch in the direct rays of her ...
— The Tinder-Box • Maria Thompson Daviess

... village of Sercham is reached; here, as at Hadji Aghi, I at once become the bone of contention between rival khan-jees wanting to secure me for a guest, on the supposition that I am going to remain over night. Their anxiety is all unnecessary, however, for away off on the eastern horizon can be observed clusters of familiar black dots that awaken agreeable reflections of the night ...
— Around the World on a Bicycle V1 • Thomas Stevens



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