WordWeb Online

1. An evasion of the point of an argument by raising irrelevant distinctions or objections
   - quibble, cavil
    
2. The essence that makes something the kind of thing it is and makes it different from any other
   - haecceity

Derived forms: quiddities

Type of: center [US], centre [Brit, Cdn], core, equivocation, essence, evasion, gist, heart, heart and soul, inwardness, kernel, marrow, meat, nitty-gritty, nub, pith, substance, sum

Encyclopedia: Quiddity