a dispute: a clash between two sides, from a hot quarrel to a formal legal case
At its core this word names a contest between two parties who are at odds. The same word covers the whole range of that contest, from a flaring quarrel between neighbors to a case argued in front of judges, because to the Hebrew mind both are the same thing seen at different temperatures: two sides pressing opposing claims, and someone needing to decide who is right.
The everyday end of the range is plain conflict. Herdsmen squabble over grazing land, a short temper sets off a brawl, a nation rises up in strife. The legal end is the courtroom: a matter taken to the elders at the gate, a plaintiff laying out a grievance, a judge weighing the two sides. Hebrew slides between these without changing the word, which is why the same term can mean a backyard fight in Proverbs and a sworn lawsuit in Deuteronomy.
Its most striking use is when God himself is a party. The prophets picture the LORD bringing a formal case against his own people or against the nations, summoning them as if to court, stating the charge, and announcing the verdict. The covering image is a trial, and the wronged party can be a person pleading before the divine Judge or God pressing his own claim against those who have broken faith with him.