Merriam-Webster's Word of the Day for March 5, 2023 is: repartee \rep-er-TEE\ noun

Repartee can refer to either “a conversation in which clever statements and replies are made quickly” or a single “quick and witty reply.” It can also refer to one’s cleverness and wit in conversation, as in “an aunt widely known for her repartee at family gatherings.”

// The twins’ repartee at the back of the class always [cracked up](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/crack%20up#h2) their classmates, though their teacher was rarely amused.

[See the entry >](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/repartee)

Examples:

“The language of the play moves between the [vernacular](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/vernacular) and the elevated, informed by the repartee of TV sitcoms as well as by the poetry of William Blake.” — Rebecca Mead, The New Yorker, 19 June 2022

Did you know?

[Dorothy Parker](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Dorothy-Parker) was known for her repartee. Upon hearing that former president [Calvin Coolidge](https://www.britannica.com/biography/Calvin-Coolidge) had died, the poet, short-story writer, screenwriter, and critic—famous for her [acerbic](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/acerbic) wit—replied, “How can they tell?” The [taciturn](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/taciturn) Coolidge, aka “Silent Cal,” obviously didn’t have a reputation for being the life of the party, but he could be counted on for the occasional [bon mot](https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bon%20mot), as when a Washington, D.C., hostess told him, “You must talk to me, Mr. President. I made a bet today that I could get more than two words out of you,” and he replied, “You lose.” Repartee, our word for a quick, sharp reply (and for skill with such replies) comes from the French repartie, of the same meaning. Repartie itself is formed from the French verb repartir, meaning “to retort.”