[1] : The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

retort \retort"\, v. t. imp.  p. p. retorted; p. pr.  vb.
   n. retorting. l. retortus, p. p. of retorquere; pref. re-
   re- + torquere to turn twist. see torsion, and cf.
   retort, n., 2.
   1. to bend or curve back; as, a retorted line.
      1913 webster

            with retorted head, pruned themselves as they
            floated.                              --southey.
      1913 webster

   2. to throw back; to reverberate; to reflect.
      1913 webster

            as when his virtues, shining upon others,
            heat them and they retort that heat again
            to the first giver.                   --shak.
      1913 webster

   3. to return, as an argument, accusation, censure, or
      incivility; as, to retort the charge of vanity.
      1913 webster

            and with retorted scorn his back he turned.
                                                  --milton.
      1913 webster
see also:
retorted retorting torsion retort 

[2] : The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

retort \retort"\, v. i.
   to return an argument or a charge; to make a severe reply.
   --pope.
   1913 webster

[3] : The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48

retort \retort"\, n. see retort, v. t.
   1. the return of, or reply to, an argument, charge, censure,
      incivility, taunt, or witticism; a quick and witty or
      severe response.
      1913 webster

            this is called the retort courteous.  --shak.
      1913 webster

   2. f. retorte cf. sp. retorta, fr. l. retortus, p. p. of
      retorquere. so named from its bent shape. see retort, v.
      t. chem.  the arts a vessel in which substances are
      subjected to distillation or decomposition by heat. it is
      made of different forms and materials for different uses,
      as a bulb of glass with a curved beak to enter a receiver
      for general chemical operations, or a cylinder or
      semicylinder of cast iron for the manufacture of gas in
      gas works.
      1913 webster

   tubulated retort chem., a retort having a tubulure for
      the introduction or removal of the substances which are to
      be acted upon.
      1913 webster

   syn: repartee; answer.

   usage: retort, repartee. a retort is a short and pointed
          reply, turning back on an assailant the arguments,
          censure, or derision he had thrown out. a repartee is
          usually a good-natured return to some witty or
          sportive remark.
          1913 webster
see also:
retort tubulated retort repartee 

[4] : WordNet (r) 2.0

retort
     n 1: a quick reply to a question or remark especially a witty or
          critical one; "it brought a sharp rejoinder from the
          teacher" syn: rejoinder, return, riposte, replication,
           comeback, counter
     2: a vessel where substances are distilled or decomposed by
        heat
     v : answer back syn: come back, repay, return, riposte,
          rejoin
see also:
rejoinder return riposte replication comeback counter 
come back repay rejoin 

[5] : Moby Thesaurus II by Grady Ward, 1.0

137 moby thesaurus words for "retort":
   acknowledge, acknowledgment, aerosol, alembic, answer, answer back,
   answering, antiphon, anvil, aphorism, apothegm, atomizer,
   back answer, back talk, backchat, backfire, bon mot, boomerang,
   boutade, bright idea, bright thought, brilliant idea, caldron,
   come back, come back at, come in, comeback, conceit, counter,
   counterattack, counterblast, counterblow, countercharge,
   counterfire, counterinsurgency, countermeasure, counterrevolution,
   counterstep, counterstroke, crack, crucible, defense, echo, engine,
   epigram, evaporator, evasive reply, exchange, facetiae, flash back,
   flash of wit, flight of wit, gag, get back at, gibe,
   give acknowledgment, give and take, give answer, give in exchange,
   give in return, give-and-take, happy thought, hit back at,
   interchange, jape, jest, joke, lathe, machine, melting pot, mortar,
   mot, motor, nasty crack, persiflage, play of wit, pleasantry, quip,
   quips and cranks, react, reaction, ready reply, rebut, rebuttal,
   receipt, reciprocate, reciprocation, recoil, recrimination, reecho,
   rejoin, rejoinder, repartee, replication, reply, repost, reprisal,
   rescript, rescription, respond, respondence, response, responsion,
   responsory, retaliate, retaliation, return, return answer,
   return for answer, revenge, reverberate, reverberation, riposte,
   sally, say, say in reply, scintillation, shoot back, short answer,
   smart crack, smart saying, snappy comeback, spray, still,
   strike back, stroke of wit, talk back, test tube, transducer,
   transformer, turn of thought, vaporizer, wisecrack, witticism,
   witty reply, witty retort, yes-and-no answer

Retort >> R Words
Retort, definition of term: Retort
retort_pag1.html

Retort Magazine - Online Literary Journal - ISSN 1445 - 7164 ** Think Forward - ...
...RETORT MASTHEAD. RETORT MAGAZINE. C/O 38 Macarthur Place. Carlton ... Retort pits a feral diversity and a growly avant-gardist manifesto ... ..
http://www.retortmagazine.com/, score=100, date indexed=January 20, 2006, 2:39 am

Retort Magazine - Online Literary Journal - ISSN 1445 - 7164 ** Think Forward - ...
...RETORT MASTHEAD. RETORT MAGAZINE. C/O 38 Macarthur Place. Carlton ... Retort pits a feral diversity and a growly avant-gardist manifesto ... ..
http://www.retortmag.com/, score=96, date indexed=January 20, 2006, 4:24 am

Drudge Retort: Red Meat for Yellow Dogs
...Recent comments to the Drudge Retort....  . Dem Frontrunners: Clinton ... ..
http://www.drudge.com/, score=95, date indexed=December 29, 2005, 10:30 pm

Retort Magazine - Online Literary Journal - ISSN 1445 - 7164 ** Think Forward - ...
...RETORT MASTHEAD. RETORT MAGAZINE. C/O 38 Macarthur Place. Carlton ... Retort pits a feral diversity and a growly avant-gardist manifesto ... ..
http://www.retortmagazine.com/retort.htm, score=91, date indexed=January 20, 2006, 5:45 am

Drudge Retort Weblog: Red Meat for Yellow Dogs
... ..
http://www.drudge.com/weblog.html, score=80, date indexed=January 20, 2006, 5:09 am

Retort Pouch Packaging Courses
...... Pouch and a broad knowledge of problems in approving retort packages. ... the retort-pouch. -From an actual course presented at "Retort-Pouch ... ..
http://www.packaginggroup.com/, score=38, date indexed=January 20, 2006, 12:21 pm

Welcome to Retort Chemicals Pvt. Ltd. ::
... ..
http://www.retortchemicals.com/, score=36, date indexed=December 30, 2005, 2:23 pm

The Retort - MSU-Billings Student Newspaper
...Note: to view the Retort on line you must have a current version of ... MSU-Billings Home Questions? Send e-mail to: retort@msubillings.edu. ... ..
http://www.msubillings.edu/retort/, score=32, date indexed=January 1, 2006, 1:52 am

Drudge Retort: Red Meat for Yellow Dogs
...Recent comments to the Drudge Retort....  . Dem Frontrunners: Clinton ... ..
http://www.drudge.com/index.html, score=31, date indexed=December 29, 2005, 7:23 pm

Page 1 2 Next