Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. A swift, witty reply.
- n. Conversation marked by the exchange of witty retorts. See Synonyms at wit1.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. A ready, pertinent, and witty reply.
- n. Such replies in general or collectively; the kind of wit involved in making sharp and ready retorts.
- n. Synonyms Repartee, Retort. A repartee is a witty and good-humored answer to a remark of similar character, and is meant to surpass the latter in wittiness. A retort is a keen, prompt answer. A repartee may be called a retort where the wit is keen. Retort, however, is quite as commonly used for a serious turning back of censure, derision, or the like, in a short and sharp expression.
- To make ready and witty replies.
Wiktionary
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. A smart, ready, and witty reply.
- v. To make smart and witty replies.
WordNet 3.0
- n. adroitness and cleverness in reply
Etymologies
- French repartie, from feminine past participle of repartir, to retort, from Old French, to retort, to depart again : re-, re- + partir, to depart (from Latin partīre, to divide, from pars, part-, part; see perə-2 in Indo-European roots).
Examples
“French people generally have always admired a command of words and wit, an elegance of expression and a sharpness of mind expressing itself in repartee, and even in France Paris is particularly famous for it.”
“A young Irish newsboy, with a gift for quips and repartee, is named Oscar Wilde.”
The Washington Post: "The Strange Affair of Spring Heeled Jack," steampunk by Mark Hodder
“I love to engage in repartee with people who are stupider than I am," Coulter told the crowd of 2,600 Wednesday.”
““I love to engage in repartee with people who are stupider than I am,” Coulter told the 2,600 people at Jorgensen Auditorium.”
“No ladies can rival him in repartee, much less compete with him in poetry, so they were all afraid of him, but [this evening] he did not give a cup to any particular lady to make her compose poems.”
“And he was gifted with that peculiar power which enables a man to have the last word in every encounter, -- a power which we are apt to call repartee, which is in truth the readiness which comes from continual practice.”
“Let me reproduce the brilliant repartee: is all of Oklahoma a bit slow? (”
“I’m rather fond of old-fashioned invective in repartee: but I don’t accuse folks of lying, unless I can prove it.”
“Sadly, some prog Think Pessimism participants can’t remember their own talking-points if they engage in repartee with the opposition.”
“And he was gifted with that peculiar power which enables a man to have the last word in every encounter, — a power which we are apt to call repartee, with is in truth the readiness which come from continual practice.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘repartee’.
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GRE Barrons Wordlist
A complete Barron's Wordlist for GRE preparation. Your online flashcard replacement.
abase, abash, abate, abbreviate, abdicate, aberrant, aberration, abet, abeyance, abhor, abject, abjure and 4084 more...
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Wordplay & Pun
wordplay, pound, conceit, clinch, joke, quibble, equivoque, double-entendre, quillet, calembour, carriwitchet, paranomasia and 89 more...
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The Spoken Word
Words relating to Conversation
adage, adamant, brusque, candor, cavil, compelling, didactic, disparage, emphatic, facetious, frank, fulminate and 7 more...
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Types of Humor
dry wit, irony, sarcasm, black humor, blue humor, gallows humor, parody, Burlesque, satire, repartee, wit, deadpan and 12 more...
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sbbrucey's list
supposably
reciprocity
serendipity
jmjarmstrong JM is enjoying the book on witty repartee ‘Of Human Badinage’. Aug 25, 2011