reply
Americanverb (used without object)
-
replies,
present (3rd person singular)
-
replied,
past participle, past
-
replying
present participle
-
to make answer in words or writing; answer; respond.
to reply to a question.
- Synonyms:
- rejoin
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to respond by some action, performance, etc..
to reply to the enemy's fire.
-
to return a sound; echo; resound.
-
Law. to answer a defendant's plea.
verb (used with object)
-
replies,
present (3rd person singular)
-
replied,
past participle, past
-
replying
present participle
verb
-
to make answer (to) in words or writing or by an action; respond
he replied with an unexpected move
-
(tr; takes a clause as object) to say (something) in answer
he replied that he didn't want to come
-
law to answer a defendant's plea
-
to return (a sound); echo
noun
-
an answer made in words or writing or through an action; response
-
the answer made by a plaintiff or petitioner to a defendant's case
Synonym Usage
See answer.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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replysimple
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repliessimple
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have repliedperfect
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has repliedperfect
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am replyingprogressive
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are replyingprogressive
-
is replyingprogressive
-
have been replyingperfect progressive
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has been replyingperfect progressive
Past
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repliedsimple
-
had repliedperfect
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was replyingprogressive
-
were replyingprogressive
-
had been replyingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of reply
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English replien (verb), from Middle French replier “to fold back, reply,” from Latin replicāre “to unroll, fold back”; see replicate
Explanation
Whenever you say something in response to someone, you reply. If your teacher asks why you're late to school, you might reply, "Sorry, I missed the bus." To answer back or respond is to reply, and whatever you say is also a reply. Your reply could be a long quotation from a Shakespeare soliloquy, or it might be a simple, silent nod of the head. You can also reply using a letter, a text, or an email. Reply comes from the Late Latin replicare, which means both "to reply or repeat," but also "to fold back."
Vocabulary lists containing reply
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:
Send me an email at [email protected] or reply to this email.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2026
The office of Israel’s prime minister didn’t reply to a request for comment.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2026
Lyles did not reply to a request for comment.
From Salon ● Oct. 20, 2026
Kagiso Rabada nicked off Australia opener Nic Maddinson in the first over of Australia's reply to further boost the hosts' cause.
From BBC ● Oct. 20, 2026
“Oh, I’m sorry. I didn’t know that,” I reply, ready to crawl into a hole.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
Witness the president’s replies to reporters’ shouted questions Monday on his way to Marine One.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 21, 2026
Asked by Fielder whether she’s ever told a lie in her life, she replies, “I don’t think so.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 16, 2026
“That was unintended,” he replies, only digging himself in deeper when he explains that, like plumbers or electricians, he was there to do a job.
From Salon ● Oct. 1, 2026
Maybe “what I do,” Chris replies, “is a little worse.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026
“He was. His name was Kevin,” Candie replies.
From "Split the Sky" by Marie Arnold
“That was for my girlfriend,” Stafford replied, then caught himself.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 24, 2026
Asked if Melania could participate in trilateral Ukraine-Russia-US peace talks that the Kremlin says will resume in Abu Dhabi next month, Trump replied: "No, but it's not the worst idea I've ever heard."
From Barron's ● Oct. 23, 2026
“We don’t reward those who are just screaming for attention,” Ramaswamy replied, turning away from the troublemaker.
From Slate ● Oct. 23, 2026
Czarniak replied: “Almost too much to bear, Al.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2026
“Not in money,” the social worker replied, and even though he was on the phone, the boy could tell he was smiling.
From "Not Nothing" by Gayle Forman
I realized that replying to complicated requests or problems in anger or haste was never smart, so I kept his rule to slow my response time down eight hours for future correspondence.
From Slate ● Sep. 27, 2026
Let me know how they handled any downgrade by replying to this email or emailing me at [email protected].
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026
She has since stopped replying to messages from AFP.
From Barron's ● Sep. 3, 2026
She remembers being repeatedly asked what colour socks the child had been wearing, and replying that they were cream.
From BBC ● Jul. 23, 2026
But in the pause I took before replying he started talking in his lighthearted way again.
From "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
