respond
Americanverb (used without object)
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to reply or answer in words.
to respond briefly to a question.
- Synonyms:
- rejoin
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to make a return by some action as if in answer.
to respond generously to a charity drive.
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to react favorably.
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Physiology. to exhibit some action or effect as if in answer; react.
Nerves respond to a stimulus.
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to correspond (usually followed byto ).
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Bridge. to make a response.
verb (used with object)
noun
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Architecture. a half pier, pilaster, or the like projecting from a wall as a support for a lintel or an arch, the other side of which is supported on a free-standing pier or column.
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Ecclesiastical.
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a short anthem chanted at intervals during the reading of a lection.
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verb
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to state or utter (something) in reply
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(intr) to act in reply; react
to respond by issuing an invitation
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to react favourably
this patient will respond to treatment
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an archaic word for correspond
noun
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architect a pilaster or an engaged column that supports an arch or a lintel
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Christianity a choral anthem chanted in response to a lesson read at a church service
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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respondsimple
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respondssimple
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have respondedperfect
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has respondedperfect
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am respondingprogressive
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are respondingprogressive
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is respondingprogressive
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have been respondingperfect progressive
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has been respondingperfect progressive
Past
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respondedsimple
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had respondedperfect
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was respondingprogressive
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were respondingprogressive
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had been respondingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of respond
First recorded in 1350–1400; (for the verb) from Latin respondēre “to promise in return, reply, answer,” from re- re- + spondēre “to pledge, promise”; (for the noun) Middle English: “responsory,” from Old French, derivative of respondre “to reply,” from Latin respondēre
Explanation
Invited to a great party? You might respond by shouting "Hooray!" and then letting your friend know you'll be there. To respond is to react or reply. Fireman, police, and EMTs are known as first responders. This is because they are the first people to respond to an emergency. If you get into an accident, an EMT might check your reflexes to see how they respond.
Vocabulary lists containing respond
Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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"My Favorite Chaperone," Vocabulary from the short story
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Academic Vocabulary Toolkit 1, Words 81-90
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The Laguna Beach Police Department didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026
The government did not respond to AFP's requests for comment for this article.
From Barron's ● Jul. 13, 2026
It says schools should set out clear expectations of behaviour which is acceptable and unacceptable and how they will respond - including the use of consequences.
From BBC ● Jul. 13, 2026
A spokesman for Graham didn’t respond to requests for comment.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026
Before I could respond, Corban sat down, and Tess joined him a second later.
From "Glitch" by Laura Martin
“If token prices come down, we’ll use more AI. Tech is used to disinflation, and it responds with product innovation,” he told MarketWatch.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 9, 2026
By comparing multiple photos taken from exactly the same position over months and years, researchers can build up a detailed picture of how the coastline responds to different weather conditions and seasons.
From BBC ● Jul. 9, 2026
"The quantum Fisher information quantifies how sensitively a quantum system responds to a change," explains Bühler-Paschen.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 8, 2026
Markets in turn are guessing how the Fed responds to incoming data; the better the guess, the more efficiently policy transmits.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 28, 2026
Before I can turn and run away, Nora responds with, “I get it. I hate change, too.”
From "A Soft Place to Land" by Janae Marks
Saturday, D.C.’s Fire and EMS responded to a report of chest pains at a home on South Capitol Street, a few blocks south of the U.S.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 12, 2026
France's embassy in Madrid also responded in a post to social media.
From Barron's ● Jul. 12, 2026
Firefighters also responded to other incidents across the night including accidental house fires in Antrim and Coleraine and an articulated lorry fire in Newry.
From BBC ● Jul. 12, 2026
Neither the White House nor the EAC immediately responded to a request for comment.
From Salon ● Jul. 11, 2026
Door responded by extracting a small box from his goody bag and opening it.
From "Boy 2.0" by Tracey Baptiste
As kids age, he says, they usually “pick up the idea that they shouldn’t be responding with prejudice.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 13, 2026
Firefighters responding at the senator’s Capitol Hill address got no answer.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 13, 2026
Throughout the day on Friday, hundreds of firefighters, military and law enforcement personnel, and 30 aircraft, continued responding to the blaze.
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026
These cells eventually become blue, green, or red cones, each responding to different wavelengths of light.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 9, 2026
Audrey and I had texted Jenna so that all three of us could open them at once, but that was around the time that Jenna had stopped responding.
From "Keep It Together, Keiko Carter" by Debbi Michiko Florence
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
