answer
Use Answer in a sentence
sər, ˈɑn- noun
1.
a spoken or written reply or response to a question, request, letter, etc.: He sent an answer to my letter promptly.
2.
a correct response to a question asked to test one's knowledge.
3.
an equivalent or approximation: a singing group that tried to be the French answer to the Beatles.
4.
an action serving as a reply or response: The answer was a volley of fire.
5.
a solution to a problem, especially in mathematics.
6.
a reply to a charge or accusation.
7.
Law. a pleading in which a party responds to his or her opponent's statement of position, especially the defendant's reply to the plaintiff's complaint.
8.
Music. the entrance of a fugue subject, usually on the dominant, either slightly altered or transposed exactly after each presentation in the tonic.
verb (used without object)
9.
to speak or write in response; make answer; reply.
10.
to respond by an act or motion: He answered with a nod. The champion answered with a right to the jaw.
11.
to act or suffer in consequence of (usually followed by for ).
12.
to be or declare oneself responsible or accountable (usually followed by for ): I will answer for his safety.
13.
to be satisfactory or serve (usually followed by for ): His cane answered for a baseball bat.
00:10
Answer
is one of our favorite verbs.
So is subtilize. Does it mean:
| to run away hurriedly; flee. |
| to introduce subtleties into or argue subtly about. |
verb (used with object)
Verb phrases 15.
to speak or write in response to; reply to: to answer a person; to answer a question.
16.
to act or move in response to: Answer the doorbell. We answered their goal with two quick goals of our own.
17.
to solve or present a solution of.
18.
to serve or fulfill: This will answer the purpose.
19.
to discharge (a responsibility, claim, debt, etc.).
23.
Idioms answer back, to reply impertinently or rudely: Well-behaved children do not answer back when scolded.
24.
answer the helm, Nautical. (of a vessel) to maneuver or remain steady according to the position of the rudder.
Origin:
before 900; Middle English andswerien, Old English andswerian, andswarian derivative of andswaru an answer, equivalent to and- opposite, facing (cf. and, along) + Germanic *swarō, derivative of swear
before 900; Middle English andswerien, Old English andswerian, andswarian derivative of andswaru an answer, equivalent to and- opposite, facing (cf. and, along) + Germanic *swarō, derivative of swear
Related forms
an·swer·er, noun
an·swer·less, adjective
un·an·swered, adjective
un·an·swer·ing, adjective
well-an·swered, adjective
Synonyms
1. riposte. Answer, rejoinder, reply, response, retort all mean words used to meet a question, remark, charge, etc. An answer is a return remark: an answer giving the desired information. A rejoinder is a quick, usually clever answer or remark made in reply to another's comment, not to a question. Reply usually refers to a direct or point-by-point response to a suggestion, proposal, question, or the like: a reply to a letter. A response often suggests an answer to an appeal, exhortation, etc., or an expected or fixed reply: a response to inquiry; a response in a church service. A retort implies a keen, prompt answer, especially one that turns a remark upon the person who made it: a sharp retort. 6. defense, plea.
1. riposte. Answer, rejoinder, reply, response, retort all mean words used to meet a question, remark, charge, etc. An answer is a return remark: an answer giving the desired information. A rejoinder is a quick, usually clever answer or remark made in reply to another's comment, not to a question. Reply usually refers to a direct or point-by-point response to a suggestion, proposal, question, or the like: a reply to a letter. A response often suggests an answer to an appeal, exhortation, etc., or an expected or fixed reply: a response to inquiry; a response in a church service. A retort implies a keen, prompt answer, especially one that turns a remark upon the person who made it: a sharp retort. 6. defense, plea.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
Cite This Source
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Link To answer
Collins
World English Dictionary
answer (ˈɑːnsə) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —n | |
| 1. | a reply, either spoken or written, as to a question, request, letter, or article |
| 2. | a reaction or response in the form of an action: drunkenness was his answer to disappointment |
| 3. | a solution, esp of a mathematical problem |
| 4. | law |
| a. a party's written reply to his opponent's interrogatories | |
| b. (in divorce law) the respondent's written reply to the petition | |
| 5. | a musical phrase that follows the subject of a fugue, reproducing it a fifth higher or a fourth lower |
| —vb (usually foll by to) (for) (to) | |
| 6. | ( |
| 7. | (tr) to reply correctly to; solve or attempt to solve: I could answer only three questions |
| 8. | to respond or react (to a stimulus, command, etc): the steering answers to the slightest touch |
| 9. | (tr) to pay off (a debt, obligation, etc); discharge |
| 10. | to meet the requirements (of); be satisfactory (for); serve the purpose (of): this will answer his needs; this will answer for a chisel |
| 11. | to match or correspond (esp in the phrase answer (or answer to) the description) |
| 12. | (tr) to give a defence or refutation of (a charge) or in (an argument) |
| [Old English andswaru an answer; related to Old Frisian ondser, Old Norse andsvar; see | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
Cite This Source
Etymonline
Word Origin & History
answer
O.E. andswaru "a reply," from and- "against" (see ante) + -swaru "affirmation," from swerian "to swear" (see swear), suggesting an original sense of "make a sworn statement rebutting a charge." A common Gmc. compound (cf. O.S. antswor, O.N. andsvar,
O.Fris. ondser), implying a P.Gmc. *andswara-. Meaning "a reply to a question," the main modern sense, was in O.E. The verb is from O.E. answarian. Answerable "liable to be held responsible" is from 1540s. The telephone answering machine is from 1961.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage
Idioms & Phrases
answer
In addition to the idioms beginning with answer, also see know all the answers; take no for an answer.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Example sentences
Your third option is to examine the intent behind the question and respond with an answer as it might apply to the job.
One answer is desalination-but it is an expensive answer because it requires a lot of energy.
We don't yet have a good answer for why this should be so.
We will make every effort to answer your queries and will reply to you via email within two business days.
Idioms & Phrases
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