retaliate
English · Thesaurus
AI In plain words
Writing a short explanation…
Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.
retaliate
- /ɹɪˈtæl.i.eɪt/
Where it comes from
From Latin retāliātus, past participle of retāliō (“to requite, retaliate”).
verb retaliates · retaliating · retaliated
- To do something harmful or negative to get revenge for some harm; to fight back or respond in kind to an injury or affront. John insulted Peter to retaliate for Peter's acid remark earlier.
- To repay or requite by an act of the same kind. One ambassador sent word to the duke's son that his visit should be retaliated.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: revenge, avenge, reprisal, counterattack, respond, answer, reply, react, grind, return, retort, repulse, retrogress, revile, fight back, pay out
Translations
Every language
verb do something harmful to get revenge
| Español | represaliar, tomar represalias, retaliar, retalear |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | 仕返し shikaeshi suru |
| 中文 | 報復 /报复 bàofu |
| Português | retaliar |
| Français | riposter, rendre la pareille à quelqu'un, user de représailles, se venger de |
| Deutsch | Vergeltung üben, sich rächen |
| Italiano | reagire, rivalersi, vendicarsi |
| Română | riposta, a plăti cu aceeași monedă (cuiva), a se răzbuna |
| Русский | мстить mstitʹ, отомсти́ть otomstítʹ |
| עברית | עשה פעולת תגמול asá peulát tagmúl, נקם nakám |
Talk about this word "retaliate." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/retaliate. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. retaliate. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/retaliate "retaliate." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/retaliate.Cite this
@misc{retaliate_2026,
title = {retaliate},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/retaliate},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
