respond

English

Etymology

From Old French respondre (Modern répondre), from Latin respondeō.

Pronunciation

• Rhymes: -ɒnd

Noun

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ɹəˈspɒnd/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ɹəˈspɑnd/

Verb

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ɹəˈspɒnd/, /ˈɹiːˌspɒnd/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ɹəˈspɑnd/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

Verb

respond (third-person singular simple present responds, present participle responding, simple past and past participle responded)

1. (transitive, intransitive) To say something in return; to answer; to reply.

   to respond to a question or an argument

2. (intransitive) To act in return; to carry out an action or in return to a force or stimulus; to do something in response
   • 2012 January 1, Robert M. Pringle, “How to Be Manipulative”, in American Scientist‎^[1], volume 100, number 1, page 31:

     As in much of biology, the most satisfying truths in ecology derive from manipulative experimentation. Tinker with nature and quantify how it responds.

3. (transitive, intransitive) To correspond with; to suit.
   • Fairfax

     For his great deeds respond his speeches great.

4. (transitive) To satisfy; to answer.

   The prisoner was held to respond the judgment of the court.

Derived terms

• responder
• responsive

Translations

to say something in return

• Afrikaans: antwoord
• Arabic: أَجَابَ‎‎ (ʾajāba)
• Asturian: responder
• Burmese: ထူး (my) (htu:)
• Catalan: respondre (ca)
• Danish: svare (da)
• Finnish: vastata (fi)
• French: répondre (fr)
• Friulian: rispuindi
• Galician: responder (gl)
• German: antworten (de)
• Italian: rispondere (it)
• Ladin: respuender

• Maori: urupare, kātoitoi, tāoro, whakahoki, whakautu
• Norman: èrpotchi
• Occitan: respondre (oc)
• Portuguese: responder (pt)
• Romanian: răspunde (ro)
• Romansch: respunder
• Russian: отвеча́ть (ru) impf (otvečátʹ), отве́тить (ru) pf (otvétitʹ)
• Sardinian: rispòndhere
• Sicilian: rispùnniri (scn)
• Spanish: responder (es)
• Tok Pisin: bekim tok

to act in return

• Asturian: responder
• Finnish: vastata (fi)
• French: répondre (fr)
• German: reagieren (de)
• Italian: rispondere (it)
• Malay: bertindak balas

• Maori: tāoro, whakahoki, whakautu
• Norman: èrpotchi
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: reagere (no), svare (no)

• Portuguese: responder (pt)
• Spanish: responder (es)

to correspond

• Finnish: vastata (fi)
• French: répondre (fr)
• Norman: èrpotchi

• Spanish: responder (es)
• Tok Pisin: bekim tok, tok

to satisfy

• French: répondre (fr)

• Greek: ανταποκρίνομαι (el) (antapokrínomai)

to say in reply, to respond — see return

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout#Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Esperanto: ^{(please verify)} respondi (eo)

• Italian: ^{(please verify)} rispondere (it)

Noun

respond (plural responds)

1. A response.
2. A versicle or short anthem chanted at intervals during the reading of a lection.
3. (architecture) A half-pillar, pilaster, or any corresponding device engaged in a wall to receive the impost of an arch.

Related terms

• response
• responsible
• responsibleness
• responsibly
• responsibility
• responsive
• responsively
• responsiveness

See also

• react

References

• respond in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911
• respond in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913

Anagrams

• Ponders, ponders