retort
noun/rɪˈtɔːt/
/rɪˈtɔːrt/
- a quick, angry or humorous reply synonym rejoinder, riposte
- She bit back (= stopped herself from making) a sharp retort.
Extra Examples- He opened his mouth to make a caustic retort.
- He was stung into an angry retort.
- Her remark drew angry retorts from the unemployed workers.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- quick
- sharp
- clever
- …
- come up with
- make
- bite back
- …
Definitions on the go
Look up any word in the dictionary offline, anytime, anywhere with the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary app.
- a closed bottle with a long narrow bent spout that is used in a laboratory for heating chemicals
Word Originnoun sense 1 late 15th cent. (in the sense ‘hurl back an accusation or insult’): from Latin retort- ‘twisted back, cast back’, from the verb retorquere, from re- ‘in return’ + torquere ‘to twist’. noun sense 2 early 17th cent.: from French retorte, from medieval Latin retorta, feminine past participle of retorquere ‘twist back’ (with reference to the long recurved neck of the laboratory container).
Check pronunciation:
retort