Past tense of retort
regular verb
The past tense of retort is retorted. The past participle is also retorted.
Forms of retort
| Base form (V1) | retort /ɹɪˈtɔɹt/ |
|---|---|
| Past tense (V2) | retorted /ɹɪˈtɔɹtɪd/ |
| Past participle (V3) | retorted /ɹɪˈtɔɹtɪd/ |
| Present participle | retorting |
| Third person singular | retorts |
Retorted in a sentence
- “It is a pity,” he retorted with aggravating meekness, “that they do not use a little common sense.1904–1905, Baroness Orczy [i.e., Emma Orczy], “The Ayrsham Mystery”, in The Case of Miss Elliott, London: T[homas] Fisher Unwin, published...
- a retorted line
- Christie retorted, “Is that one of the skills you get as a United States senator?2016 February 6, Kyle Cheney, “11 most explosive moments of the GOP debate”, in Politico. From the entry esp
- "That's war, my girl," he retorted, and rubbed his mouth with the back of his hand.2013 March 12 [1968], Anton Myrer, chapter 1, in Once an Eagle, HarperCollins, →ISBN, Orchard. From the entry boodleize
- Don't do anything gooseish, will you?' 'No, and don't you do anything gooseish either!' she retorted.2008, Georgette Heyer, Charity Girl - Page 23. From the entry goosish
Meaning of retort
- noun A sharp or witty reply, or one which turns an argument against its originator; a comeback.
- verb To say something sharp or witty in answer to a remark or accusation.
- verb To make a remark which reverses an argument upon its originator; to return, as an argument, accusation, censure, or incivility.
Questions about the past tense of retort
- What is the past tense of retort?
- The past tense of retort is retorted.
- What is the past participle of retort?
- The past participle of retort is retorted.
- Is retort a regular or irregular verb?
- Retort is a regular verb: its past tense adds -ed.
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: retort (page history and authors) and the entries of its forms. Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws left out forms marked obsolete, archaic, rare or dialectal and added the examples. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
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Cite this page: “Past tense of retort.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/past-tense/retort. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.