reply

[ ri-plahy ]

/ rɪˈplaɪ /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR reply ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object), re·plied, re·ply·ing.

to make answer in words or writing; answer; respond: to reply to a question.

to respond by some action, performance, etc.: to reply to the enemy's fire.

to return a sound; echo; resound.

Law. to answer a defendant's plea.

verb (used with object), re·plied, re·ply·ing.

to return as an answer (usually used in a negative combination or followed by a clause with that): Not a syllable did he reply. He replied that no one would go.

noun, plural re·plies.

an answer or response in words or writing.

a response made by some action, performance, etc.

Words nearby reply

replication, replicative, replicator, replicon, replisome, reply, reply card, repo, repoint, repolarization, repone

Origin of reply

1350–1400; Middle English replien (v.) < Middle French replier to fold back, reply < Latin replicāre to unroll, fold back; see replicate

SYNONYMS FOR reply

1 rejoin.

6 rejoinder, riposte.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR reply ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM reply

re·pli·er, nounun·re·plied, adjectiveun·re·ply·ing, adjective

synonym study for reply

6. See answer.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for replies

King Lear becomes Lear texting “okay who wants a kingdom,” to which Goneril replies “me me I do.”
What Would Jane Eyre Sext?|Jennie Yabroff|December 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
To be fair, these are replies to arguments put forth by the plaintiffs in the case.
All The Wrong Reasons to Ban Gay Unions|Jay Michaelson|November 7, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“Like Gwyneth Paltrow,” Eliza replies, finally understanding the concept of inner beauty.
‘Selfie’ Is Both a Brilliant and Terrible TV Show|Kevin Fallon|September 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“Tell me before I forget,” Cianci replies, and when they do, he remembers a graduation, an uncle, a Little League tournament.
Can America’s Favorite Ex-Con Mayor Win Again?|David Freedlander|June 22, 2014|DAILY BEAST

When I ask him what religious denomination he represents, he replies, “every.”
Ukraine’s Vigilante Peacemakers|James Kirchick|May 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The replies of Sandilla to various remarks and questions lately put to him are shrewd enough.
The Cape and the Kaffirs|Harriet Ward
Since then I have not questioned her as often—perhaps only once a week, and her replies have varied, some being very good.
Lola|Henny Kindermann
His replies were perfectly ingenuous, evincing nothing of the natural taciturnity and shyness of the Indian mind.
The Indian in his Wigwam|Henry R. Schoolcraft
"He has gone a-hunting for a year and a day," replies the mother.
The English and Scottish Popular Ballads (Volume I of 5)|Various
The latter felt bored by his friends; their topic of conversation was always the same; he knew their replies by heart.
Married|August Strindberg

British Dictionary definitions for replies

/ (rɪˈplaɪ) /

verb -plies, -plying or -plied (mainly intr)

to make answer (to) in words or writing or by an action; respondhe replied with an unexpected move

(tr; takes a clause as object) to say (something) in answerhe replied that he didn't want to come

law to answer a defendant's plea

to return (a sound); echo

noun plural -plies

an answer made in words or writing or through an action; response

the answer made by a plaintiff or petitioner to a defendant's case

Derived forms of reply

replier, noun

Word Origin for reply

C14: from Old French replier to fold again, reply, from Latin replicāre to fold back, from re- + plicāre to fold

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012