Retort

Pronunciation

• GenAm IPA: /ɹɪˈtɔɹt/
• RP IPA: /ɹɪˈtɔːt/
• Rhymes: -ɔː(ɹ)t
• Hyphenation: re + tort

From Latin retortus, from retorquere ("to be forced to twist back").

Full definition of retort

Noun

1. A sharp or witty reply, or one which turns an argument against its originator; a comeback.

Verb

1. To say something sharp or witty in answer to a remark or accusation.
• 1905, w, w:The Case of Miss Elliott Chapter 1, “It is a pity,” he retorted with aggravating meekness, “that they do not use a little common sense. The case resembles that of Columbus'  egg, and is every bit as simple. …”
2. To make a remark which reverses an argument upon its originator; to return, as an argument, accusation, censure, or incivility.to retort the charge of vanity
• MiltonAnd with retorted scorn his back he turned.
3. To bend or curve back.a retorted line
• SoutheyWith retorted head, pruned themselves as they floated.
4. To throw back; to reverberate; to reflect.
• ShakespeareAs when his virtues, shining upon others,
  Heat them and they retort that heat again
  To the first giver.

From French retorte.

Noun

1. (chemistry) A flask with a rounded base and a long neck that is bent down and tapered, used to heat a liquid for distillation.
• 1893, A large curved retort was boiling furiously in the bluish flame of a Bunsen burner, and the distilled drops were condensing into a two-litre measure. — Arthur Conan Doyle, ‘The Naval Treaty’ (Norton 2005, p.670)
2. A container in which material is subjected to high temperatures as part of an industrial manufacturing process, especially during the smelting and forging of metal.

Verb

1. To heat in a retort.

Anagrams

• rotter