Retort

Definitions

1. A flask with a rounded base and a long neck that is bent down and tapered, used to heat a liquid for distillation.
2. A sharp or witty reply, or one which turns an argument against its originator; a comeback.
3. An airtight vessel in which material is subjected to high temperatures in the chemical industry or as part of an industrial manufacturing process, especially during the smelting and forging of metal.
4. A pressure cooker.
5. A crematory furnace.

Equivalents

Examples

“He countered her insult with a clever retort.”

“A large curved retort was boiling furiously in the bluish flame of a Bunsen burner, and the distilled drops were condensing into a two-litre measure⟳.”

“The retort is above boiling water. Beneath is a furnace. To the right a man is removing the chips from which the camphor has been extracted.”

CEFR level