Dictionary.com

reply

[ ri-plahy ]
/ rɪˈplaɪ /
Save This Word!
See synonyms for: reply / replied / replies / replying on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object), re·plied, re·ply·ing.
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.
QUIZ
CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?
There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?
Question 1 of 7
Which sentence is correct?

Origin of reply

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

synonym study for reply

6. See answer.

OTHER WORDS FROM reply

re·pli·er, nounun·re·plied, adjectiveun·re·ply·ing, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use reply in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for reply

reply
/ (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
FEEDBACK