the.com/altercation

means A noisy argument or fight, often heated but short of serious violence.

from From Latin altercatio, from altercari, 'to dispute or wrangle with,' built on alter, 'the other (of two).' The core idea is two sides bickering back and forth, each pressing the other's opposing view — the word has meant a verbal tussle since its earliest use, long before English dressed it up as a polite synonym for brawling.