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respond

[ ri-spond ]
/ rɪˈspɒnd /
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See synonyms for: respond / responded / responding on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
to say in answer; reply.
noun
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.
Ecclesiastical.
  1. a short anthem chanted at intervals during the reading of a lection.
  2. responsory.
  3. response.
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Origin of respond

1350–1400; (noun) Middle English: responsory <Old French, derivative of respondre to respond <Latin respondēre to promise in return, reply, answer, equivalent to re-re- + spondēre to pledge, promise (see sponsor); (v.) <Latin respondēre

OTHER WORDS FROM respond

o·ver·re·spond, verbun·re·spond·ing, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use respond in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for respond

respond
/ (rɪˈspɒnd) /

verb
to state or utter (something) in reply
(intr) to act in reply; reactto respond by issuing an invitation
(intr foll by to) to react favourablythis patient will respond to treatment
an archaic word for correspond
noun
architect a pilaster or an engaged column that supports an arch or a lintel
Christianity a choral anthem chanted in response to a lesson read at a church service

Derived forms of respond

respondence or respondency, nounresponder, noun

Word Origin for respond

C14: from Old French respondre, from Latin rēspondēre to return like for like, from re- + spondēre to pledge; see spouse, sponsor
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
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