Green’s Dictionary of Slang

to have an argument; also attrib.

1823		J. Galt Entail I 53: ‘Weel, weel,’ said the Laird, ‘dinna let us argol-bargol about it.’.
1825		Enniskillen Chron. & Erne Packet 14 Dec. 4/3: I listened [...] and still the sound of the argle-bargling became more distinct.
1828		D. Moir Mansie Wauch 78: Me and the minister were just argle-bargling some few words on the doctrine of the camel and the eye of the needle.
1830		J. Galt Lawrie Todd II Pt V 143: In the end I was, after no little argolbargoling, obliged to succumb.
1833		Caledonian Mercury 22 June 4/1: I must [...] decline further argle-barging with you.
1861		E.B. Ramsay Reminiscences of Scot. Life and Character (2nd series) 99: A crowd of men and lads [...] some smoking and all ‘arglebargling,’ as if at the end of a fair.
1865		Belfast Morn. News 19 May 4/4: An ‘Argle Bargle’ and its Result. [...] Two valiant men, both short-tempered, commenced (to use an expressve Scotch phrase) to ‘argle-bargle’.
1886		R.L. Stevenson Kidnapped 97: Last night ye haggled and argle-bargled like an apple-wife.
1898		Morn. Post (London) 8 June 5/2: There had been a Strike, and [...] masters and men were argle-bargling.
1899		Peterhead Sentinel 18 Mar. 5/3: To fall out with Mr Spence’s paper [...] one would need to be chock-full of the ‘argle-bargling spirit’.
1904		W. Knight Retrospects 15: As regards metaphysics and the metaphysicians, They argle-bargle, I say; they chatter, I say.
1909		J. Ware Passing Eng. of the Victorian Era 10/1: Argol-bargol. To have a row.
1916		W. Pett Ridge Madame Prince 309: I don’t wish to think there’ll be any argle-bargleing when I’m gone.
1945		Buckingham Advertiser 12 May 7/1: Care to come along and have an argle-bargle with Chuck?
2001		I. Whitney ‘Corn and Death’ 🌐 5 Jan. My new favorite word is ‘argle-bargle’, which means to argue. But it doesn’t really matter what it means, it’s just fun to say. argle-bargle, argle-bargle, bargle bargle bargle. ‘Argle’ is just a shortening of the word argue & ‘bargle’ is there just because it rhymes and it sounds cool.