response

[ ri-spons ]

/ rɪˈspɒns /

Save This Word!

See synonyms for: response / responses on Thesaurus.com

noun

an answer or reply, as in words or in some action.

Biology. any behavior of a living organism that results from an external or internal stimulus.

Ecclesiastical.

a verse, sentence, phrase, or word said or sung by the choir or congregation in reply to the officiant.Compare versicle (def. 2).
responsory.

Bridge. a bid based on an evaluation of one's hand relative to the previous bid of one's partner.

OTHER WORDS FOR response

1 rejoinder.

See synonyms for response on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

ALL IN FAVO(U)R OF THIS BRITISH VS. AMERICAN ENGLISH QUIZ

There's an ocean of difference between the way people speak English in the US vs. the UK. Are your language skills up to the task of telling the difference? Let's find out!

Question 1 of 7

True or false? British English and American English are only different when it comes to slang words.

true

false

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of response

1250–1300; <Latin respōnsum, noun use of neuter past participle of respondēre to respond; replacing Middle English respounse<Middle French respons<Latin, as above

synonym study for response

1. See answer.

OTHER WORDS FROM response

re·sponse·less, adjectivecoun·ter·re·sponse, noun

Words nearby response

respondence, respondent, respondent conditioning, responder, Responsa, response, responser, response time, response variable, responsibilities, responsibility

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use response in a sentence

In response to the PPC announcement, someone on Twitter asked if we’d even need websites anymore eventually.
Is Google moving toward being search marketing’s point of singularity: Thursday’s daily brief|Carolyn Lyden|February 11, 2021|Search Engine Land
Grief is our natural emotional response to loss, so allow yourself to feel it — and any other emotions that may arise.
Politics and conspiracy theories are fracturing relationships. Here’s how to grieve those broken bonds.|Jeff Schrum|February 11, 2021|Washington Post
The proper responses to unpleasant remarks by Elizabeth are silence and a change of subject.
Miss Manners: Time to cut ties with longtime friend?|Judith Martin, Nicholas Martin, Jacobina Martin|February 11, 2021|Washington Post
The response has been amazing to this single day virtual event.
Pitch to speak at SMX Create!|Kathy Bushman|February 10, 2021|Search Engine Land

These included not just responses to sudden downturns for Covid-19-stricken people, but also natural disasters and helping in related situations when other problems arose.
RapidSOS raises $85M for a big data platform aimed at emergency responders|Ingrid Lunden|February 9, 2021|TechCrunch
I think the response of the French government so far has been pretty appropriate in that regard.
Harry Shearer on The Dangerous Business of Satire|Lloyd Grove|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Their immediate response tells an important truth about a police slowdown that has spread throughout New York City in recent days.
Shot Down During the NYPD Slowdown|Michael Daly|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
What is known is that Peña Nieto bungled his response to the crisis.
Why Mexicans Are Enraged by Obama’s Big Tuesday Meeting|Ruben Navarrette Jr.|January 6, 2015|DAILY BEAST
But the enduring response—stop the world, I want to get off—is the same.
The Evangelical Apocalypse Is All Your Fault|Jay Michaelson|January 4, 2015|DAILY BEAST
With enough changing of the influenza RNA over time, the vaccine no longer provokes the “right” immune response.
When You Get the Flu This Winter, You Can Blame Anti-Vaxxers|Kent Sepkowitz|January 1, 2015|DAILY BEAST
To make the effort of articulation a vital impulse in response to a mental concept,—this is the object sought.
Expressive Voice Culture|Jessie Eldridge Southwick
There was no response to the knock, and Davy cautiously pushed open the door and went in.
Davy and The Goblin|Charles E. Carryl
The knocker appeared to hear the response, and to assert that it was quite impossible he could wait so long.
The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club, v. 2(of 2)|Charles Dickens
Winifred, indeed, in response to a question, said faintly that she thought she could keep going if she had a drink of milk.
The Red Year|Louis Tracy
To this there was no response, the stranger thinking with bitterness that his trip was anything but one of pleasure.
The Cromptons|Mary J. Holmes

British Dictionary definitions for response

response

/ (rɪˈspɒns) /

noun

the act of responding; reply or reaction

bridge a bid replying to a partner's bid or double

(usually plural) Christianity a short sentence or phrase recited or sung by the choir or congregation in reply to the officiant at a church service

electronics the ratio of the output to the input level, at a particular frequency, of a transmission line or electrical device

any pattern of glandular, muscular, or electrical reactions that arises from stimulation of the nervous system

Derived forms of response

responseless, adjective

Word Origin for response

C14: from Latin rēsponsum answer, from rēspondēre to respond

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

Scientific definitions for response

response

[ rĭ-spŏns′ ]

A reaction, as that of an organism or any of its parts, to a specific stimulus. See more at classical conditioning.

response

OTHER WORDS FOR response

Origin of response

synonym study for response

OTHER WORDS FROM response

Words nearby response

Words related to response

How to use response in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for response

Derived forms of response

Word Origin for response

Scientific definitions for response