riposte
noun · verb
Simple meaning
A quick and usually witty response to a taunt.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
rihpohstSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ɹɪˈpoʊst
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
figurative
A quick and usually witty response to a taunt.
An answer or reply, rapidly uttered, in response to a question or problem.
A quick reply to a question or remark (especially a witty or critical one)
by extension
A counter-attack in any combat or any sport.
verb
To respond quickly; particularly if the response is humorous.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C2 · Proficient (estimated)
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: A quick and usually witty response to a taunt.
Used this way, riposte is a reasonably familiar word with a clearly warm, approving pull. Keep it for friendly, informal settings.
- Emotional tone
- Positive
- Formality
- Neutral
- Intensity
- Gentle
- How common
- Moderately common
- Connotation
- Playful
- Usage feel
- Playful and informal
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
More about this wordSynonyms, forms, origin
Synonyms
Sense: quick and usually witty response to a taunt
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Words can change meaning depending on context.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.