Dictionary

repartee en · NOUN

Pronunciation

• /ˌɹɛpɑɹˈteɪ/ (US)
• (US) audio
• /ˌɹɛpɑːˈtiː/ (Received-Pronunciation)

Etymology

From French repartie, a deverbal of repartir (“to retort”).

Meanings

1. (countable, uncountable) A swift, witty reply, especially one that is amusing.
   • A slight smile broke on his lips. ¶ "You are always prepared to sacrifice your principles for a repartee," he answered. 1919, W[illiam] Somerset Maugham, chapter 41, in The Moon and Sixpence, [New York, N.Y.]: Grosset & Dunlap Publishers […], →OCLC:
   • Many persons must laugh when a great person or an acknowledged wit says a clever thing, such as a smart repartee, or a really good pun. 1838 (date written), L[etitia] E[lizabeth] L[andon], chapter XIX, in Lady Anne Granard; or, Keeping up Appearances. […], volume I, London: Henry Colburn, […], published 1842, →OCLC, page 241:
   • Yet habit—strange thing! what cannot habit accomplish?—Gayer sallies, more merry mirth, better jokes, and brighter repartees, you never heard over your mahogany[…] 1851 November 14, Herman Melville, Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers; London: Richard Bentley, →OCLC:
2. (countable, uncountable) A conversation marked by a series of witty retorts.
   • Each meeting is free-flowing and the discussion less arch, less cut-and-thrust than the repartee at parties thrown in the book by the aristocratic `Guermantes family—although Proust teachs you to look for the unspoken in life as in literature. 2026 July 25, Josh Spero, “Proust in the age of TikTok”, in FT Weekend (Life & Arts section), London: The Financial Times Ltd., →ISSN, →OCLC, page 2:
3. (countable, uncountable) A skill in replying swiftly and wittily.
   • The humor of my proposition appealed more strongly to Miss Trevor than I had looked for, and from that time forward she became her old self again;[…]. Our table in the dining-room became again the abode of scintillating wit and caustic repartee, Farrar bracing up to his old standard, and the demand for seats in the vicinity rose to an animated competition. 1897 December (indicated as 1898), Winston Churchill, chapter VIII, in The Celebrity: An Episode, New York, N.Y.: The Macmillan Company; London: Macmillan & Co., Ltd., →OCLC:
   • Another millstone around the NDP’s neck was the relative lack of seasoned parliamentarians in the government front bench who were skilled enough at repartee to take on the Tory veterans across the floor. 1982 December 11, Frances Russell, “Economic performance buoys Pawley’s position”, in The Vancouver Sun (The Weekend Sun), Vancouver, BC, page A6:

Forms

Synonyms

joke

Translations (34)

cs trefná replika (swift witty retort) · fr repartie (swift witty retort) · ru остроу́мный отве́т (swift witty retort) · no vittighet (swift witty retort) · hu szópárbaj (conversation marked by swift witty retorts) · de Schlagabtausch (conversation marked by swift witty retorts) · pl błyskotliwa wymiana zdań (conversation marked by swift witty retorts) · sv fyndighet (swift witty retort) · hu riposzt (swift witty retort) · de Schlagfertigkeit (skill in making swift witty retorts) · cs pohotová odpověď (swift witty retort) · it botta e risposta (conversation marked by swift witty retorts) · tr espri (swift witty retort) · pl replika (swift witty retort) · sv kvick replik (swift witty retort) · tr nükte (swift witty retort) · sh prepucavanje (swift witty retort) · nl gevatheid (skill in making swift witty retorts) · nl repliek (swift witty retort) · tl patnig (swift witty retort) · sv rappt svar (swift witty retort) · nl gevat antwoord (swift witty retort) · tg аския (swift witty retort) · de Konter (swift witty retort) · de Geplänkel (conversation marked by swift witty retorts) · de schlagfertige Antwort (swift witty retort) · pl umiejętność ripostowania (skill in making swift witty retorts) · bg остроумен отговор (swift witty retort) · sv slagfärdighet (swift witty retort) · pl riposta (swift witty retort) · hu visszavágás (swift witty retort) · sv raljerande (swift witty retort) · pl pocisk (swift witty retort) · sv kvickhet (swift witty retort)

repartee en · VERB

Pronunciation

• /ˌɹɛpɑɹˈteɪ/ (US)
• (US) audio
• /ˌɹɛpɑːˈtiː/ (Received-Pronunciation)

Etymology

From French repartie, a deverbal of repartir (“to retort”).

Meanings

1. (transitive) To reply with a repartee.
   • Aubrey speaks of him as 'incomparable at reparteeing, the bull that was bayted, his witt beinge most sparkling, when most set on and provoked.' 1862, Various, The Continental Monthly, Vol. 2 No 4:
2. (transitive) To have a repartee (a conversation marked by witty retorts or replies).
   • To see them together, friendly, reparteeing, chummy, would turn your stomach--Barbara so exquisite and high-born, and the man, his eyes full of evil fires, sitting like a great toad on the model's chair. 1913, Gouverneur Morris, The Penalty:

Forms

Translations (9)

pl prowadzić błyskotliwą wymianę zdań (to have a conversation marked by swift witty retorts) · de sich einen Schlagabtausch m liefern (to have a conversation marked by swift witty retorts) · pl pociskać (to reply with a swift witty retort) · pl ripostować (to reply with a swift witty retort) · hu riposztoz (to reply with a swift witty retort) · pl zripostować (to reply with a swift witty retort) · de schlagfertig antworten (to reply with a swift witty retort) · pl pocisnąć (to reply with a swift witty retort) · hu visszavág (to reply with a swift witty retort)