What does answer mean?

Definitions for answer
ˈæn sər, ˈɑn-an·swer

This dictionary definitions page includes all the possible meanings, example usage and translations of the word answer.

Princeton's WordNet

  1. answer, reply, responsenoun

    a statement (either spoken or written) that is made to reply to a question or request or criticism or accusation

    "I waited several days for his answer"; "he wrote replies to several of his critics"

  2. solution, answer, result, resolution, solventnoun

    a statement that solves a problem or explains how to solve the problem

    "they were trying to find a peaceful solution"; "the answers were in the back of the book"; "he computed the result to four decimal places"

  3. answernoun

    the speech act of replying to a question

  4. answernoun

    the principal pleading by the defendant in response to plaintiff's complaint; in criminal law it consists of the defendant's plea of `guilty' or `not guilty' (or nolo contendere); in civil law it must contain denials of all allegations in the plaintiff's complaint that the defendant hopes to controvert and it can contain affirmative defenses or counterclaims

  5. answerverb

    a nonverbal reaction

    "his answer to any problem was to get drunk"; "their answer was to sue me"

  6. answer, reply, respondverb

    react verbally

    "She didn't want to answer"; "answer the question"; "We answered that we would accept the invitation"

  7. answerverb

    respond to a signal

    "answer the door"; "answer the telephone"

  8. answerverb

    give the correct answer or solution to

    "answer a question"; "answer the riddle"

  9. answer, resolveverb

    understand the meaning of

    "The question concerning the meaning of life cannot be answered"

  10. answerverb

    give a defence or refutation of (a charge) or in (an argument)

    "The defendant answered to all the charges of the prosecution"

  11. answerverb

    be liable or accountable

    "She must answer for her actions"

  12. suffice, do, answer, serveverb

    be sufficient; be adequate, either in quality or quantity

    "A few words would answer"; "This car suits my purpose well"; "Will $100 do?"; "A 'B' grade doesn't suffice to get me into medical school"; "Nothing else will serve"

  13. answerverb

    match or correspond

    "The drawing of the suspect answers to the description the victim gave"

  14. answerverb

    be satisfactory for; meet the requirements of or serve the purpose of

    "This may answer her needs"

  15. answerverb

    react to a stimulus or command

    "The steering of my new car answers to the slightest touch"

Samuel Johnson's Dictionary

  1. Answernoun

    Etymology: from To answer.

    It was a right answer of the physician to his patient, that had sore eyes: If you have more pleasure in wine than in your sight, wine is good. John Locke.

    How can we think of appearing at that tribunal, without being able to give a ready answer to the questions which he shall then put to us, about the poor and the afflicted, the hungry and the naked, the sick and imprisoned? Francis Atterbury, Sermons.

    A personal answer ought to have three qualities; it ought to be pertinent to the matter in hand; it ought to be absolute and unconditional; it ought to be clear and certain. John Ayliffe, Par.

  2. To ANSWERverb

    Etymology: The etymology is uncertain; the Saxons had andswarian, but in another sense; the Dutch have antwoorden.

    Are we succour’d? are the Moors remov’d?
    Answer these questions first, and then a thousand more,
    Answer them altogether. John Dryden, Spanish Friar.

    No man was able to answer him a word. Matt. xxii. 46.

    If it be said, we may discover the elementary ingredients of things, I answer, that it is not necessary that such a discovery should be practicable. Boyle.

    Some men have sinned in the principles of humanity, and must answer for not being men. Thomas Browne, Vulgar Errours.

    If there be any absurdity in this, our author must answer for it. John Locke.

    The night, so impudently fixed for my last, made little impression on myself; but I cannot answer for my family. Jonathan Swift.

    How they have been since received, and so well improved, let those answer either to God or man, who have been the authors and promoters of such wise council. William Temple.

    He wants a father to protect his youth,
    And rear him up to virtue. You must bear
    The future blame, and answer to the world,
    When you refuse the easy honest means
    Of taking care of him. Thomas Southerne, Innocent Adultery.

    In water face answereth to face: so the heart of man to man. Prov. xxvii. 19.

    A feast is made for laughter, and wine maketh merry: but money answereth all things. Eccl. x. 19.

    Revenge the jeering and disdain’d contempt
    Of this proud king, who studies day and night
    To answer all the debt he owes unto you,
    Ev’n with the bloody payments of your deaths. William Shakespeare, Hen. IV.

    Men no sooner find their appetites unanswered, than they complain the times are injurious. Walter Raleigh, Hist. of the World.

    Say, do’st thou yet the Roman harp command?
    Do the strings answer to thy noble hand? John Dryden, Persius.

    There can but two things create love, perfection and usefulness; to which answer, on our part,
    1. Admiration; and,
    2. Desire: and both these are centered in love. Taylor.

    He desired, that proper officers might search me; for probably I might carry several weapons, which must needs be dangerous things, if they answered the bulk of so prodigious a person. Jonathan Swift, Gulliver’s Travels.

    Our part is, to choose out the most deserving objects, and the most likely to answer the ends of our charity; and when that is done, all is done that lies in our power: the rest must be left to providence. Francis Atterbury, Sermons.

    He dies that touches of this fruit,
    Till I and my affairs are answered. William Shakespeare, As you like it.

    Jason followed her counsel, whereto, when the event had answered, he again demanded the fleece. Walter Raleigh, Hist. of the W.

    We see likewise, that much water draweth forth the juice of the body infused; but little water is imbibed by the body: and this is a principal cause, why, in operations upon bodies for their version or alteration, the trial in great quantities doth not answer the trial in small; and so deceiveth many. Francis Bacon, Natural History, №. 92.

    Thou wert better in thy grave, than to answer, with thy uncovered body, this extremity of the skies. William Shakespeare, King Lear.

    Fire answers fire, and, by their paly beams,
    Each battles sees the other’s umber’d face. William Shakespeare, Henry V.

Wikipedia

  1. ANSWER

    Act Now to Stop War and End Racism (ANSWER), also known as International A.N.S.W.E.R. and the ANSWER Coalition, is a United States–based protest umbrella group consisting of many antiwar and civil rights organizations. Formed in the wake of the September 11th attacks, ANSWER has since helped to organize many of the largest anti-war demonstrations in the United States, including demonstrations of hundreds of thousands against the Iraq War. The group has also organized activities around a variety of other issues, ranging from the Israel/Palestine debate to immigrant rights to Social Security to the extradition of Luis Posada Carriles.ANSWER characterizes itself as anti-imperialist, and its steering committee consists of socialists, communists, civil rights advocates, and left-wing or progressive organizations from the Muslim, Arab, Palestinian, Filipino, Haitian, and Latin American communities. Many of ANSWER's lead organizers had ties to the International Action Center and Workers World Party at the time of ANSWER's founding.ANSWER has faced criticism from other anti-war groups for its affiliations, tactics at demonstrations, and allegedly sectarian approach to joint anti-war work. It also faced criticism from various sources for its claimed anti-Zionist politics. The organization's national headquarters are in Washington, D.C.

ChatGPT

  1. answer

    An answer is a response, explanation, or solution given to a question, problem, or situation. It is a statement or information that provides clarity, resolution, or understanding to a particular inquiry or issue.

Webster Dictionary

  1. Answernoun

    to speak in defense against; to reply to in defense; as, to answer a charge; to answer an accusation

  2. Answernoun

    to speak or write in return to, as in return to a call or question, or to a speech, declaration, argument, or the like; to reply to (a question, remark, etc.); to respond to

  3. Answernoun

    to respond to satisfactorily; to meet successfully by way of explanation, argument, or justification, and the like; to refute

  4. Answernoun

    to be or act in return or response to

  5. Answernoun

    to be or act in compliance with, in fulfillment or satisfaction of, as an order, obligation, demand; as, he answered my claim upon him; the servant answered the bell

  6. Answernoun

    to render account to or for

  7. Answernoun

    to atone; to be punished for

  8. Answernoun

    to be opposite to; to face

  9. Answernoun

    to be or act an equivalent to, or as adequate or sufficient for; to serve for; to repay

  10. Answernoun

    to be or act in accommodation, conformity, relation, or proportion to; to correspond to; to suit

  11. Answerverb

    to speak or write by way of return (originally, to a charge), or in reply; to make response

  12. Answerverb

    to make a satisfactory response or return

  13. Answerverb

    to render account, or to be responsible; to be accountable; to make amends; as, the man must answer to his employer for the money intrusted to his care

  14. Answerverb

    to be or act in return

  15. Answerverb

    to be or act by way of compliance, fulfillment, reciprocation, or satisfaction; to serve the purpose; as, gypsum answers as a manure on some soils

  16. Answerverb

    to be opposite, or to act in opposition

  17. Answerverb

    to be or act as an equivalent, or as adequate or sufficient; as, a very few will answer

  18. Answerverb

    to be or act in conformity, or by way of accommodation, correspondence, relation, or proportion; to conform; to correspond; to suit; -- usually with to

  19. Answernoun

    a reply to a change; a defense

  20. Answernoun

    something said or written in reply to a question, a call, an argument, an address, or the like; a reply

  21. Answernoun

    something done in return for, or in consequence of, something else; a responsive action

  22. Answernoun

    a solution, the result of a mathematical operation; as, the answer to a problem

  23. Answernoun

    a counter-statement of facts in a course of pleadings; a confutation of what the other party has alleged; a responsive declaration by a witness in reply to a question. In Equity, it is the usual form of defense to the complainant's charges in his bill

  24. Etymology: [OE. andswerien, AS. andswerian, andswarian, to answer, fr. andswaru, n., answer. See Answer, n.]

Wikidata

  1. Answer

    The Answer is the name of two fictional comic book characters, owned by Marvel Comics and appearing in that company's Marvel Universe. Aaron Nicholson first appeared in Peter Parker, the Spectacular Spider-Man #92. After his "death", S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, David Ferrari took the name of Answer in Captain America vol. 3 #42.

Chambers 20th Century Dictionary

  1. Answer

    an′sėr, v.t. to reply to: to satisfy or solve: to repay: to suit: to suffer the consequences of.—v.i. to reply: to reply favourably: to act in conformity with, as 'to answer the helm:' to be accountable for (with for): to correspond: to be advantageous to: to turn out well.—n. a reply: a solution.—adj. An′swerable, able to be answered: accountable: suitable: equivalent: proportional (with to).—adv. An′swerably.—n. An′swerer.—adv. An′swerless. [A.S. andswar-ianandswaru; and-, against, swerian, to swear.]

Editors Contribution

  1. answer

    An effective and efficient solution.

    The answer is simple, the solution is easy as we work together in unity to create the solutions we choose in order of priority.


    Submitted by MaryC on February 13, 2020  

Suggested Resources

  1. answer

    The answer symbol -- In this Symbols.com article you will learn about the meaning of the answer symbol and its characteristic.

British National Corpus

  1. Spoken Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'answer' in Spoken Corpus Frequency: #1217

  2. Written Corpus Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'answer' in Written Corpus Frequency: #690

  3. Nouns Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'answer' in Nouns Frequency: #359

  4. Verbs Frequency

    Rank popularity for the word 'answer' in Verbs Frequency: #226

How to pronounce answer?

How to say answer in sign language?

Numerology

  1. Chaldean Numerology

    The numerical value of answer in Chaldean Numerology is: 4

  2. Pythagorean Numerology

    The numerical value of answer in Pythagorean Numerology is: 8

Examples of answer in a Sentence

  1. Donald Trump:

    We have now given Read MoreOn Aug. 8 an answer. Obviously, Read MoreOn Aug. 8 should take a few days to consider it, but we should get this resolved, we do not want to run into the November elections.

  2. Anugya Jha:

    I'm a student here. I study law here. I was to answer an exam on the constitution today, but what's left of it?, what constitution do I go back and study now? Have they left any of it?

  3. Jose Cordero:

    I don’t know. I don’t know the answer to that, i think that one has to be intrigued in terms of the differences.

  4. Clinton Sanders:

    Yes, I'm stunned, look, we have a message that I believed from day one was going to resonate with the American people. ... Did I think (the issues) would resonate as quickly as they have? The answer is no.

  5. Adam Schiff:

    I don't know whether the White House is directly involved, because we can't get an answer to that question, but we do know that they are making some claim that a privilege may apply.

Popularity rank by frequency of use

answer#1#1251#10000

Translations for answer

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"answer." Definitions.net. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 19 Mar. 2024. <https://www.definitions.net/definition/answer>.

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    the act of giving an account describing incidents or a course of events
    A helm
    B mitre
    C recital
    D tingle

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