Updated on March 6, 2024
The word 'respond' holds great significance in our daily lives, as it represents our ability to communicate and interact with others. It is a culturally important term, as it is used in various forms across different languages and cultures, reflecting the universal need for dialogue and understanding.
Did you know that the word 'respond' comes from the Latin word 'respondere,' which means 'to promise in return'? This historical context highlights the importance of reciprocity in communication, a value that is still relevant today.
Knowing the translation of 'respond' in different languages can help you better connect with people from diverse backgrounds and cultures. It can also enhance your language learning experience, as you deepen your understanding of grammar and vocabulary.
Here are some translations of 'respond' in various languages:
Afrikaans | reageer | ||
The verb "reageer" ultimately derives from the Latin word "reagere", meaning "to act back". | |||
Amharic | መልስ ስጥ | ||
The Amharic verb መልስ ስጥ (respond) can also mean "to answer" or "to tell someone to do something." | |||
Hausa | amsa | ||
"Amsa" also means "answer" and "reply" in Hausa. | |||
Igbo | zaghachi | ||
"Zaghachi" also means "to give account" or "to confess" in Igbo. | |||
Malagasy | asehonao | ||
"Asehonao" derives from the root word "seho" (to be attentive, to wait) and the prefix "a" (to perform an action). | |||
Nyanja (Chichewa) | yankhani | ||
The word "yankhani" can also mean "answer" or "reply". | |||
Shona | pindura | ||
In addition to meaning "to answer," pindura can also mean "to respond" and "to obey." | |||
Somali | ka jawaab | ||
"Ka jawaab" originates from the Arabic word "جواب" (jawāb), meaning "reply" or "answer". | |||
Sesotho | arabela | ||
The word "arabela" also means "to answer" or "to reply" in Sesotho. | |||
Swahili | jibu | ||
Swahili 'jibu', in addition to 'answer', can also be a noun describing the 'reply'. | |||
Xhosa | phendula | ||
The Xhosa word "phendula" also means "to translate" or "to interpret". | |||
Yoruba | fesi | ||
The word "fesi" also means "to hear" in Yoruba. | |||
Zulu | phendula | ||
The Zulu word "phendula" can also mean "to answer" or "to return a message". | |||
Bambara | ka jaabi | ||
Ewe | ɖo eŋu | ||
Kinyarwanda | subiza | ||
Lingala | kopesa eyano | ||
Luganda | okuddamu | ||
Sepedi | fetola | ||
Twi (Akan) | yi ano | ||
Arabic | رد | ||
The word "رد" in Arabic can also mean "to inherit", "to follow" or "to repel" | |||
Hebrew | לְהָגִיב | ||
The Hebrew word "לְהָגִיב" can also mean "to react" or "to give feedback". | |||
Pashto | ځواب | ||
The Pashto word ځواب is derived from the Persian word جواب, meaning 'answer', and is commonly used to mean 'response' or 'answer' in Pashto. | |||
Arabic | رد | ||
The word "رد" in Arabic can also mean "to inherit", "to follow" or "to repel" |
Albanian | pergjigje | ||
The word "pergjigje" in Albanian comes from the Proto-Indo-European root "*gweg-" meaning "to speak, to say". | |||
Basque | erantzun | ||
Originating from Latin "responsum" meaning "answer," "erantzun" later came to also mean "reply" and "response" in the Basque language. | |||
Catalan | respondre | ||
In Catalan, "respondre" also means "to answer" a question or request. | |||
Croatian | odgovoriti | ||
The verb "odgovoriti" also means "to answer" in Croatian. | |||
Danish | svare | ||
The word "svare" can also mean "to swear" or "to curse" in Danish. | |||
Dutch | reageren | ||
The Dutch word 'reageren' is related to the French 'réagir', which means to react. | |||
English | respond | ||
"Respond" comes from Latin "respondere," meaning "to promise in return," and the Old French "espondre," meaning "to lay out" or "to explain." | |||
French | répondre | ||
The French verb répondre also carries a sense of meeting a requirement or an expectation. | |||
Frisian | beäntwurdzje | ||
The word "beäntwurdzje" in Frisian originates from the Old Frisian word "antwurdia", meaning "to answer" or "to give a reply". | |||
Galician | responder | ||
In Galician, "responder" can also mean "to be responsible for" or "to take care of". | |||
German | reagieren | ||
"Reagieren" also means to react to something or to take action in response to something. | |||
Icelandic | svara | ||
The word "svara" comes from the Old Norse word "svara", which means "to answer" or "to respond". | |||
Irish | freagra a thabhairt | ||
The Irish word freagra a thabhairt is a verbal noun derived from the verb freagair (respond), which originated in the Proto-Indo-European root *bʰreg- (to break, shatter, roar) | |||
Italian | rispondere | ||
"Rispondere" is a verb in Latin, composed by "re-," denoting repetition or reaction, and "spondere," meaning "promise." | |||
Luxembourgish | reagéieren | ||
Reagéieren is also used in Luxembourgish to mean to react, to respond or to interact. | |||
Maltese | twieġeb | ||
The word "twieġeb" in Maltese derives from the Arabic "t-w-b" meaning "to repent". | |||
Norwegian | svar | ||
The word "svar" in Norwegian is derived from the Old Norse word "svara", which means "to answer" or "to speak out". | |||
Portuguese (Portugal, Brazil) | responder | ||
In Portuguese, "responder" originally meant to answer, but now also means to guarantee | |||
Scots Gaelic | freagairt | ||
The Gaelic word "freagairt" derives from the Old Irish "freagra" meaning "answer," and is cognate with the Welsh word "ateb." | |||
Spanish | responder | ||
In Spanish, 'responder' also means to be responsible for something, while 'response' translates to 'respuesta'. | |||
Swedish | svara | ||
Svara derives from the Old Norse 'svar', meaning 'answer, defence', and is cognate with English 'answer'. | |||
Welsh | ymateb | ||
The word 'ymateb' is cognate with the Irish word 'freagairt' and the Latin word 'respondere'. |
Belarusian | адгукнуцца | ||
"Адгукнуцца" is derived from the Proto-Slavic "*ogdъknǫti", meaning "to resonate, to echo". | |||
Bosnian | odgovoriti | ||
The word 'odgovoriti' is derived from the Old Slavic word 'otgovoryti', which means 'to untie, to solve'. | |||
Bulgarian | отговори | ||
The verb "отговори" has a second, less-known meaning, which is "to talk someone out of something". | |||
Czech | reagovat | ||
The verb "reagovat" comes from the French word "réagir", which means "to react". | |||
Estonian | vastata | ||
The word "vastata" is derived from the Proto-Finnic word "* vasta-*, which also means "to meet" or "to counteract". | |||
Finnish | vastata | ||
The word "vastata" in Finnish is derived from the Proto-Uralic root * vasta-, meaning "to meet, to answer." | |||
Hungarian | reagál | ||
The word "reagál" can also mean "react" but is usually used only in chemical contexts, like "a sav reagál a lúggal" (the acid reacts with the base). | |||
Latvian | atbildēt | ||
The word “atbildēt” derives from the Proto-Indo-European root “wet-” meaning “to speak” and is cognate with the English word “answer”. | |||
Lithuanian | atsakyti | ||
The Lithuanian word "atsakyti" also means "to refuse" or "to deny" something. | |||
Macedonian | одговори | ||
"Одговори" (respond) shares the root "говор" with other words related to speech and language, including "зборува" (speak) and "говорник" (speaker). | |||
Polish | odpowiadać | ||
'Odpowiedzi' (response in English) comes from 'powiedzenie', to say. | |||
Romanian | răspunde | ||
The word "răspunde" also means "to guarantee" or "to bail out" in Romanian. | |||
Russian | реагировать | ||
The word "реагировать" has Latin roots and entered the Russian language from French in the 19th century. | |||
Serbian | одговорити | ||
In Serbian, "odgovoriti" shares its root with "govor" (speak) and literally means to "speak back". | |||
Slovak | odpovedať | ||
The Slovak word "odpovedať" can also mean "to answer," "to reply," or "to correspond." | |||
Slovenian | odgovorite | ||
The word "odgovorite" is derived from the verb "odgovarjati", meaning "to answer", and it literally means "to give an answer". | |||
Ukrainian | відповісти | ||
The Ukrainian word "відповісти" also means "to answer", "to reply", and "to be responsible for something or someone" |
Bengali | সাড়া | ||
In Old Bengali, the word "সাড়া" could also mean "to wake up". | |||
Gujarati | જવાબ | ||
The word 'જવાબ' in Gujarati can also mean 'reply', 'answer', 'response', or 'reaction'. | |||
Hindi | जवाब | ||
"जवाब" is derived from the Persian word "jawāb", which means both "answer" and "question." | |||
Kannada | ಪ್ರತಿಕ್ರಿಯಿಸಿ | ||
Malayalam | പ്രതികരിക്കുക | ||
From Sanskrit **प्रतिक्ष** (pratīkṣa) 'wait' or **प्रतिकार** (pratikāra) 'compensation'. Also means 'to reply' and 'to react'. | |||
Marathi | प्रतिसाद | ||
The word "प्रतिसाद" also means "promise" or "vow" in Marathi. | |||
Nepali | प्रतिक्रिया दिनुहोस् | ||
The word "प्रतिक्रिया दिनुहोस्" comes from the Sanskrit root "kri" meaning "to do" and the suffix "-ya" meaning "to be done". It can also mean "to react" or "to give a response". | |||
Punjabi | ਜਵਾਬ | ||
The Punjabi word "ਜਵਾਬ" can also translate to "answering" in English. | |||
Sinhala (Sinhalese) | ප්රතිචාර දක්වන්න | ||
Tamil | பதிலளிக்கவும் | ||
Telugu | ప్రతిస్పందించండి | ||
Urdu | جواب | ||
The Urdu word "جواب" is derived from the Arabic word "جَوَاب" which means "answer" or "reply" and is also used to refer to a "solution" or a "hint". |
Chinese (Simplified) | 响应 | ||
响应 (respond) is also used to refer to the response of a computer program to a user request. | |||
Chinese (Traditional) | 響應 | ||
響應 is derived from 響 (sound) and 應 (answer), meaning to answer with a sound or action. | |||
Japanese | 応答する | ||
応答する derives from Chinese 應答 and means 'answer' as well as 'respond'. | |||
Korean | 응창 성가 | ||
응창 성가 originated in the Latin word "respondere" meaning "to promise". | |||
Mongolian | хариу өгөх | ||
The word "хариу өгөх" also means "to pay back a debt" or "to compensate" | |||
Myanmar (Burmese) | တုံ့ပြန်ပါ | ||
The word "respond" comes from the Latin "respondere", meaning "to answer." |
Indonesian | menanggapi | ||
Menanggapi is derived from the Proto-Austronesian word *tumpu/*tumpuq, meaning "gather" or "meet". | |||
Javanese | nanggapi | ||
"Nanggapi" is derived from the Javanese word "tangi", meaning "to stand up", and the suffix "-i", indicating a reciprocal action. | |||
Khmer | ឆ្លើយតប | ||
Lao | ຕອບສະຫນອງ | ||
Malay | membalas | ||
The Malay word "membalas" can also mean "to retaliate", "to revenge", or "to reciprocate". | |||
Thai | ตอบสนอง | ||
The word "ตอบสนอง" (respond) in Thai can also mean "react," "answer," or "satisfy." | |||
Vietnamese | trả lời | ||
It is the Sino-Vietnamese reading of 答礼 (đáp lễ), where “đáp” means “to answer” and “lễ” can mean either “manners” or “thank”. | |||
Filipino (Tagalog) | tumugon | ||
Azerbaijani | cavab ver | ||
The Azerbaijani word "cavab ver" is also used in Turkish, with the same meaning. | |||
Kazakh | жауап беру | ||
The word "жауап беру" can also mean "to answer" or "to reply" in Kazakh. | |||
Kyrgyz | жооп берүү | ||
The word "жооп берүү" can also mean "to give an answer" or "to speak out" in Kyrgyz. | |||
Tajik | ҷавоб додан | ||
Turkmen | jogap ber | ||
Uzbek | javob bering | ||
Uyghur | جاۋاب | ||
Hawaiian | pane | ||
Pane can also mean 'to be quiet' or 'to make a quiet sound'. | |||
Maori | whakautu | ||
The word "whakautu" can also refer to the return of a gift or greeting, or the action of reciprocating. | |||
Samoan | tali atu | ||
The word 'tali atu' in Samoan can also refer to an exchange of responses, such as in a conversation. | |||
Tagalog (Filipino) | tumugon | ||
Tumugon is derived from the root word 'tugon' which means 'answer' or 'response'. |
Aymara | jaysaña | ||
Guarani | mbohovái | ||
Esperanto | respondi | ||
The Esperanto word "respondi" is derived from French "répondre" and also means "answer". | |||
Latin | respondent tibi | ||
Respondent tibi can also mean to answer a question, to be responsible for something, or to be a defendant in a legal case. |
Greek | απαντώ | ||
The word "απαντώ" can also mean "meet" or "occur" | |||
Hmong | teb | ||
Hmong language has two separate words 'teb' ('respond') and 'teb' ('ask') which only differ in the pitch of the 2nd tone. | |||
Kurdish | bersivdan | ||
The word "bersivdan" may also refer to "a retort". | |||
Turkish | cevap vermek | ||
The Turkish phrase "cevap vermek" can also refer to the action of "paying a debt" and is derived from the Arabic phrase "jawaba al-dayni". | |||
Xhosa | phendula | ||
The Xhosa word "phendula" also means "to translate" or "to interpret". | |||
Yiddish | ענטפערן | ||
The Yiddish word "ענטפערן" is derived from the German word "antworten," which means "to answer." | |||
Zulu | phendula | ||
The Zulu word "phendula" can also mean "to answer" or "to return a message". | |||
Assamese | সঁহাৰি | ||
Aymara | jaysaña | ||
Bhojpuri | जवाब दऽ | ||
Dhivehi | އިޖާބަދިނުން | ||
Dogri | परता | ||
Filipino (Tagalog) | tumugon | ||
Guarani | mbohovái | ||
Ilocano | sumungbat | ||
Krio | ansa | ||
Kurdish (Sorani) | وەڵامدانەوە | ||
Maithili | प्रतिक्रिया | ||
Meiteilon (Manipuri) | ꯈꯨꯝꯕ | ||
Mizo | chhanglet | ||
Oromo | deebii kennuu | ||
Odia (Oriya) | ଉତ୍ତର ଦିଅ | ||
Quechua | kutichiy | ||
Sanskrit | परतिक्रिया | ||
Tatar | җавап бир | ||
Tigrinya | መልሲ | ||
Tsonga | hlamula | ||