repartee
UK /ˌɹɛpɑːˈtiː/ · US /ˌɹɛpɑɹˈteɪ/ noun, verb
Forms repartees reparteeing reparteed
- noun A swift, witty reply, especially one that is amusing.
- noun A conversation marked by a series of witty retorts.
- noun A skill in replying swiftly and wittily.
- verb (transitive) To reply with a repartee.
- verb (transitive) To have a repartee (a conversation marked by witty retorts or replies).
Synonyms
Etymology
From French repartie, a deverbal of repartir (“to retort”).
Pseudo-Gallicism, derived from repartee with an acute accent over the second e based on the false assumption that the word was directly borrowed from *repartée, the actual French word being repartie. Compare devotée and toupée, which have similar etymologies.
Webster’s 1913
Etymology [F. repartie, fr. repartir to reply, depart again; pref. re- re- partir to part, depart. See Part.]
Sources: Wiktionary · Webster’s 1913 — from the Wiktionary entry “repartee”, CC BY-SA 4.0. Details