yes

[ yes ]

/ yɛs /

adverb

(used to express affirmation or assent or to mark the addition of something emphasizing and amplifying a previous statement): Do you want that? Yes, I do.

(used to express an emphatic contradiction of a previously negative statement or command): Don't do that! Oh, yes I will!

(used, usually interrogatively, to express hesitation, uncertainty, curiosity, etc.): “Yes?” he said as he opened the door. That was a marvelous show! Yes?

(used to express polite or minimal interest or attention.)

noun, plural yes·es.

an affirmative reply.

verb (used with object), yessed, yes·sing.

to give an affirmative reply to; give assent or approval to.

interjection

(used as a strong expression of joy, pleasure, or approval.)

QUIZZES

WHO SAID IT: A QUIZ ON PRESIDENTIAL WIT AND WISDOM

Think you know your presidents? Take this quiz and see if you can match the style, wit, and ideology of these memorable lines to the right POTUS.

Question 1 of 9

“I do believe that the buck stops here, that I cannot rely upon public opinion polls to tell me what is right. I do believe that right makes might and that if I am wrong, 10 angels swearing I was right would make no difference.”

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Origin of yes

before 900; Middle English yes, yis, Old English gēse (adv. and noun), probably equivalent to gēa yea + sī be it (present subjunctive singular of bēon to be)

Words nearby yes

Yersinia enterocolitica, Yersinia pestis, Yersinia pseudotuberculosis, yersiniosis, Yerwa-Maiduguri, yes, yes and no, ye'se, Yesenin, yeshiva, Yeşil Irmak

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Example sentences from the Web for yes

Even when asked if Neuralink’s product would allow users to stream music, Musk responded “yes” via Twitter.
Elon Musk’s secretive brain-machine venture, Neuralink, offers a glimpse|Lucinda Shen|August 28, 2020|Fortune
If you get too few “yes” votes, or let habitat destruction spread too much, or if your animal population dies out, everyone loses.
The board game Endangered shows just how hard conservation can be|Sarah Zielinski|August 21, 2020|Science News
The first series follows the work of scientists trying to decode extraterrestrial messages using high-end technology developed by- yes you guessed it – General Electric.
Podcasts and internet marketing: Are you missing the boat?|Nasirabadi Reza|July 30, 2020|Search Engine Watch
To catch the tiny aerosols that might be carrying the coronavirus, filters need a high enough MERV — yes, MERV.
How To Make Indoor Air Safer|Kaleigh Rogers (kaleigh.rogers@fivethirtyeight.com)|July 20, 2020|FiveThirtyEight

It replies that, yes, it can do it, but it’s tricky and it’ll have to think about it.
Scientists Tap the World’s Most Powerful Computers in the Race to Understand and Stop the Coronavirus|Jeremy Smith|June 4, 2020|Singularity Hub
And yes, someone has already called Spencer a “Small Fry,” har har.
Freaking Out About Age Gaps in Gay Relationships Is Homophobic|Samantha Allen|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
Yes, we do typically do better than Europe (and Canada, too, which is frequently awful on this score).
How the PC Police Threaten Free Speech|Nick Gillespie|January 9, 2015|DAILY BEAST
But yes, I pictured a James Bond-type just sauntering over to her.
‘Archer’ Creator Adam Reed Spills Season 6 Secrets, From Surreal Plotlines to Life Post-ISIS|Marlow Stern|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
And yes, our values include tolerance of those who wish to make fun of religion.
Ayaan Hirsi Ali: Our Duty Is to Keep Charlie Hebdo Alive|Ayaan Hirsi Ali|January 8, 2015|DAILY BEAST
And that may well be what is happening in the Barnett Shale region around, yes, Dallas and Irving.
26 Earthquakes Later, Fracking’s Smoking Gun Is in Texas|James Joiner|January 7, 2015|DAILY BEAST
You may kill one—two—ten; yes, as many as the leaves in the forest yonder, and their brothers will not miss them.
The Feast of the Virgins and Other Poems|H. L. Gordon
"Yes, always that," retorted the boy, and Piers Minor burst into a laugh.
The Doomsman|Van Tassel Sutphen
Yes, he had accidentally helped me, and I wished doubly that I might help him.
Lady Baltimore|Owen Wister
"Yes, I am one of the dwellers in the happy garden," answered the Peacock, strutting.
The Curious Book of Birds|Abbie Farwell Brown
"That's part of my plantation, yes," answered the Southerner.
Bunny Brown and His Sister Sue in the Sunny South|Laura Lee Hope

British Dictionary definitions for yes

yes

/ (jɛs) /

sentence substitute

used to express acknowledgment, affirmation, consent, agreement, or approval or to answer when one is addressed

used, often with interrogative intonation, to signal someone to speak or keep speaking, enter a room, or do something

noun

an answer or vote of yes

(often plural) a person who votes in the affirmative

Compare no 1

Word Origin for yes

Old English gēse, from iā sīe may it be; see yea

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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yes

adverb

noun, plural yes·es.

verb (used with object), yessed, yes·sing.

interjection

QUIZZES

WHO SAID IT: A QUIZ ON PRESIDENTIAL WIT AND WISDOM

Origin of yes

Words nearby yes

Example sentences from the Web for yes

British Dictionary definitions for yes

sentence substitute

noun

Word Origin for yes

MEANINGS

WORD GAMES

LEARN

WRITING

WORD OF THE DAY

yes

adverb

noun, plural yes·es.

verb (used with object), yessed, yes·sing.

interjection

QUIZZES

WHO SAID IT: A QUIZ ON PRESIDENTIAL WIT AND WISDOM

Origin of yes

Words nearby yes

Content related to yes

Words related to yes

Example sentences from the Web for yes

British Dictionary definitions for yes

sentence substitute

noun

Word Origin for yes