answer.
A response or reply; something said or done in reaction to a statement or question.
Meaning & usage
A response or reply; something said or done in reaction to a statement or question.
Her answer to his proposal was a slap in the face.
A solution to a problem.
There is no simple answer to corruption.
Violence is not the answer to disagreements.
Someone or something that fills a similar role or position.
A document filed in response to a complaint, responding to each point raised in the complaint and raising counterpoints.
Where this word comes from
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂ent- Proto-Indo-European *-s Proto-Indo-European *h₂éntsder. Proto-Germanic *anda- Proto-Indo-European *swer-der. Proto-Germanic *swarō Proto-Germanic *andaswarō Proto-West Germanic *andaswaru Old English andswaru Middle English answere English answer From Middle English answere, andsware, from Old English andswaru (“answer”), from and- (“against”) + swaru (“affirmation”), (from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ent- (“front, forehead”) and Old English swerian (“to swear”), from Proto-Indo-European *swer-), suggesting an original meaning of "a sworn statement rebutting a charge". The cognates suggest the existence of Proto-Germanic *andaswarō (“a reply to a question”). Cognate with Old Frisian ondser (“answer”), Old Saxon andswōr (“answer”), Danish and Swedish ansvar (“liability, responsibility, answer”), Icelandic andsvar (“answer, response”). Compare also Old English andwyrde (“answer”) (cognate to Dutch antwoord, German Antwort), Old English andcwiss (“reply”), German Schwur (“oath, vow”).
To make a reply or response to.
He answered the question.
To speak in defence against; to reply to in defence.
to answer a charge or accusation
To respond to a call by someone at a door or telephone, or other similar piece of equipment.
She answered the door.
Nobody answered when I knocked on the door.
To suit a need or purpose satisfactorily.
It answers the need.
To be accountable or responsible; to make amends.
The man must answer to his employer for the money entrusted to his care.
He has a lot to answer for.
To file a document in response to a complaint.
To correspond to; to be in harmony with; to be in agreement with.
To be opposite, or to act in opposition.
To be or act in conformity, or by way of accommodation, correspondence, relation, or proportion; to conform; to correspond; to suit; usually with to.
To respond to satisfactorily; to meet successfully by way of explanation, argument, or justification; to refute.
To be or act in compliance with, in fulfillment or satisfaction of, as an order, obligation, or demand.
He answered my claim upon him.
The servant answered the bell.
To render account to or for.
To atone for; to be punished for.
To be or act as an equivalent to, or as adequate or sufficient for; to serve for; to repay.
Where this word comes from
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂ent- Proto-Indo-European *-s Proto-Indo-European *h₂éntsder. Proto-Germanic *anda- Proto-Indo-European *swer-der. Proto-Germanic *swarjaną Proto-Germanic *andaswarjaną Old English andswerian Middle English answeren English answer From Middle English answeren, andswaren, answerien, from Old English andswarian, answarien (“to answer, to respond, to deny an allegation under oath”), from Proto-Germanic *andaswarōną, *andaswarjaną (“to answer, to give a response, to rebut”), from *anda- (“against”) + *swarjaną, *swarōną (“to swear an oath, to answer, to respond”), from Proto-Indo-European *h₂ent- (“face, forehead”) and *swer- (“to swear”). Cognate with Old Frisian ondswera (“to answer”), Danish ansvare (“to answer, account for”), Swedish ansvara (“to answer, account for”), Icelandic andsvara (“to answer, reply”).
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Definitions, grammatical labels, IPA, etymology and examples: Wiktionary contributors, extracted by Kaikki / Wiktextract. Adapted under CC BY-SA 4.0. Selected fields and authored examples are shown; third-party quotations and audio are omitted. See contributor history.
Last enriched 2026-09-10. Definitions are in English. Romanizations are shown when supplied by the source; syllable estimates are omitted for unsupported scripts.