The debate has been widely criticized for its adversarial tone.

The man's adversarial tone took Jane aback.

His responses were generally brief, but some had an edge if he detected an adversarial tone in the question.

But despite the shift in style to a less adversarial tone, the substance of Exxon's position has not changed with the new chairman.

Well, yeah,' she said, surprised by his adversarial tone.

"I didn't see any barricades or yellow tape," she defended, taking on an adversarial tone.

If nothing else would lead readers to view the report with extreme skepticism, the adversarial tone of the legal discussion should settle the matter.

And once more, Goldhagen makes his case more as prosecutor than historian, with an insistent adversarial tone.

When he talks about skeptics he has debated, it isn't with a smug or adversarial tone.

It was a marked shift from the often adversarial tone of the relationship between mayors, chancellors and Boards of Education in the past.