retort definition | Dictionary.com

re⋅tort

1 [ri-tawrt]

–verb (used with object)

1.	to reply to, usually in a sharp or retaliatory way; reply in kind to.

2.	to return (an accusation, epithet, etc.) upon the person uttering it.

3.	to answer (an argument or the like) by another to the contrary.

–noun

4.	a severe, incisive, or witty reply, esp. one that counters a first speaker's statement, argument, etc.

5.	the act of retorting.

Origin:
1590–1600; < L retortus (ptp. of retorquēre to bend back), equiv. to re- re- + torqu(ēre) to twist, bend + -tus ptp. suffix, with -qut- > -t-

Related forms:

re⋅tort⋅er, noun

Synonyms:
1. retaliate. 4. riposte, rejoinder, response. See answer.

re⋅tort

2 [ri-tawrt]

–noun

Chemistry.

a.	a vessel, commonly a glass bulb with a long neck bent downward, used for distilling or decomposing substances by heat.

b.	a refractory chamber, generally cylindrically shaped, within which some substance, as ore or coal, is heated as part of a smelting or manufacturing process.

c.	an airtight, usually cylindrical vessel of fire clay or iron, used in the destructive distillation chiefly of coal and wood in the manufacture of illuminating gas.

2.	a sterilizer for food cans.

–verb (used with object)

3.	to sterilize food after it is sealed in a container, by steam or other heating methods.

4.	Chemistry. to subject (shale, ore, etc.) to heat and possibly reduced pressure in order to produce fuel oil, metal, etc.

Origin:
1550–60; < MF retorte < ML retorta, n. use of fem. of L retortus; see retort ¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Link To retort

re·tort¹ (rĭ-tôrt')

v. re·tort·ed, re·tort·ing, re·torts

v. tr.

1. To reply, especially to answer in a quick, caustic, or witty manner. See Synonyms at answer.
2. To present a counterargument to.
To return in kind; pay back.

v. intr.

To make a reply, especially a quick, caustic, or witty one.
To present a counterargument.
To return like for like; retaliate.

A quick incisive reply, especially one that turns the first speaker's words to his or her own disadvantage.
The act or an instance of retorting.

[Latin retorquēre, retort-, to bend back, retort : re-, re- + torquēre, to bend, twist; see terk^w- in Indo-European roots.]
re·tort'er n.

re·tort² (rĭ-tôrt', rē'tôrt')

n. A closed laboratory vessel with an outlet tube, used for distillation, sublimation, or decomposition by heat.

[French retorte, from Medieval Latin retorta, from feminine of Latin retortus, past participle of retorquēre, to bend back; see retort¹.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Retort

Re*tort"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Retorted; p. pr. & vb. n. Retorting.] [L. retortus, p. p. of retorquere; pref. re- re- + torquere to turn twist. See Torsion, and cf. Retort, n., 2.]

1. To bend or curve back; as, a retorted line.

With retorted head, pruned themselves as they floated. --Southey.

2. To throw back; to reverberate; to reflect.

As when his virtues, shining upon others, Heat them and they retort that heat again To the first giver. --Shak.

3. To return, as an argument, accusation, censure, or incivility; as, to retort the charge of vanity.

And with retorted scorn his back he turned. --Milton.

Retort

Re*tort"\, v. i. To return an argument or a charge; to make a severe reply. --Pope.

Retort

Re*tort"\, n. [See Retort, v. t.]

1. The return of, or reply to, an argument, charge, censure, incivility, taunt, or witticism; a quick and witty or severe response.

This is called the retort courteous. --Shak.

2. [F. retorte (cf. Sp. retorta), fr. L. retortus, p. p. of retorquere. So named from its bent shape. See Retort, v. t.] (Chem. & the Arts) A vessel in which substances are subjected to distillation or decomposition by heat. It is made of different forms and materials for different uses, as a bulb of glass with a curved beak to enter a receiver for general chemical operations, or a cylinder or semicylinder of cast iron for the manufacture of gas in gas works.

Tubulated retort (Chem.), a retort having a tubulure for the introduction or removal of the substances which are to be acted upon.

Syn: Repartee; answer.

Usage: Retort, Repartee. A retort is a short and pointed reply, turning back on an assailant the arguments, censure, or derision he had thrown out. A repartee is usually a good-natured return to some witty or sportive remark.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : retort

Spanish: replicar,

German: erwidern,

Japanese: 言い返す

More Translations »

retort (v.)

c.1557, from L. retortus, pp. of retorquere "turn back," from re- "back" + torquere "to twist" (see thwart). The noun is 1600, from the verb.

Main Entry: re·tort
Pronunciation: ri-'to(&)rt, 'rE-"
Function: noun
: a vessel or chamber in which substances are distilled or decomposed by heat

retort re·tort (rĭ-tôrt', rē'tôrt')
n.
A closed laboratory vessel with an outlet tube, used for distillation, sublimation, or decomposition by heat.

retort (rĭ-tôrt', rē'-) Pronunciation Key
A glass laboratory vessel in the shape of a bulb with a long, downward-pointing outlet tube. It is used for distillation or decomposition by heat.

retort

vessel used for distillation of substances that are placed inside and subjected to heat. The simple form of retort, used in some laboratories, is a glass or metal bulb having a long, curved spout through which the distillate may pass to enter a receiving vessel. The design dates back to the cucurbit (flask) used by medieval alchemists.

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Encyclopedia Britannica, 2008. Encyclopedia Britannica Online.
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