respondent

[ri-spon-duhnt]

noun

1. a person who responds or makes reply.

2. Law.,  a defendant, especially in appellate and divorce proceedings.

adjective

1. giving a response; answering; responsive.

2. Law.,  being a respondent.

3. Psychology.,  of or relating to behavior that occurs consistently in response to a particular stimulus.

4. Obsolete.,  corresponding.

respondent

/ rɪˈspɒndənt /

noun

1. law a person against whom a petition, esp in a divorce suit, or appeal is brought

adjective

1. a less common word for responsive

Word History and Origins

Origin of respondent¹

1520–30; < Latin respondent- (stem of respondēns ), present participle of respondēre. See respond, -ent

Example Sentences

Political uncertainty and global instability are leading U.K. respondents to keep their guard up.

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Among AI platforms, ChatGPT and Gemini lead the way, with more than half of respondents saying they’re excited about how AI can personalize their search.

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Forty-four percent of respondents cited high prices as eroding their finances, the highest share in a year.

Read more on Barron's

Forty-nine of 100 respondents who were asked about the trend expect Microsoft to gain the largest additional share of IT budgets as a result of the shift to the cloud in the next three years.

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Most revealing was that 62% of respondents didn’t know how long their money would last.

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Related Words

• defendant 
• prisoner