riposte

noun ri·poste \ ri-ˈpōst \

|Updated on: 18 Jun 2018

Examples: riposte in a Sentence

Editor's Note: Did You Know?

Definition of riposte

1 : a fencer's quick return thrust following a parry

2 : a retaliatory verbal sally : retort

3 : a retaliatory maneuver or measure

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riposte

verb

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Examples of riposte in a Sentence

he's known for having a brilliant riposte to nearly any insult

Recent Examples of riposte from the Web

The deal is seen as a major win for Amazon as well as a riposte to its chief rival, Netflix, which has been on a creative buying spree that includes recent deals with mega-producers Ryan Murphy and Shonda Rhimes.

— david ng, latimes.com, "Amazon's TV deal with Jordan Peele among the highest-profile to date for streaming service," 5 June 2018
Andrew Wyatt, a spokesman for the defense, declined to comment Friday on Ms. Feden’s riposte to Ms. Bliss.

— jennifer schuessler, New York Times, "The Prosecutor Who Stared Down Bill Cosby," 29 Apr. 2018
But Van Dijk urged his fellow players and Liverpool's supporters to look back on the season with pride and issued the perfect riposte to gloating fans of rival clubs.

— SI.com, "Virgil Van Dijk Urges Liverpool to Be 'Proud' Despite Champions League Final Defeat," 27 May 2018
Chuck tries to nail Axe by placing a mole inside the firm, Axe catches on and volleys back with a devious riposte, Chuck steals Wendy’s session notes to gain secrets, Axe strikes back with threats, and so on and so on.

— rachel syme, The New Republic, ""Billions" reckons with the inflated egos and muddled ethics of Wall Street.," 24 Apr. 2018
Rest assured Xavier should have a strong riposte for any offer Louisville makes.

— patrick brennan, Cincinnati.com, "Is Chris Mack set to choose between Xavier, Louisville?," 26 Mar. 2018
Get our daily newsletter On February 20th Mr Corbyn issued a video riposte to the story that turned into a broadside against the press.

— The Economist, "Comrade Corbyn’s cold warLabour used to court the tabloids. Now it picks fights with them," 22 Feb. 2018
As recovering addict Jane Margolis, Ritter—a Goth Juliet to Jesse Pinkman’s drug-dealing Romeo—revealed a range well beyond a killer riposte.

— emily gaudette, Newsweek, "What is Jessica Jones's Superpower? A Killer Season 2 Comeback and Krysten Ritter," 27 Feb. 2018
The Cintas Center crowd came alive as Xavier surged back to cut the deficit to three points in the second half, but that was the sum of Xavier’s riposte – a charge led by senior Trevon Bluiett.

— patrick brennan, Cincinnati.com, "No. 3 Villanova downs No. 4 Xavier basketball in Big East clash, 95-79," 17 Feb. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'riposte.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Did You Know?

In the sport of fencing, a riposte is a counterattack made after successfully fending off one's opponent. English speakers borrowed the name for this particular maneuver from French in the early 1700s, but the French had simply modified Italian risposta, which literally means "answer." Ultimately these words come from the Latin verb respondēre meaning "to respond." It seems fitting that "riposte" has since come full circle to now refer to a quick and witty response performed as a form of retaliation.