Acknowledge
Acknowledge verb - Express recognition of the presence or existence of, or acquaintance with.
Usage example: He never acknowledges his colleagues when they run into him in the hallway
Respond is a synonym for acknowledge in verbally recognize receipt of something topic. In some cases you can use "Respond" instead a verb "Acknowledge".
Respond
Respond verb - To speak or write in reaction to a question or to another reaction.
Usage example: the students energetically participated in the discussion, responding to the teacher's questions and comments with alacrity and enthusiasm
Acknowledge is a synonym for respond in answer topic. You can use "Acknowledge" instead a verb "Respond", if it concerns topics such as reply to, act in answer to something.
Mutual synonyms
Related pairs
Common collocations
Both words in one sentence
- Despite her numerous legal challenges (none successful and most of them fruitless) to challenge President Obama's eligibility, he has yet to even acknowledge or respond.
Source: Unknown Rival -
Most units will simply acknowledge orders you give them, but order American Engineers (a non-combat unit) to attack and they'll respond with "Huh... A break from work."
Source: Welcome to Corneria -
Shinra actually does acknowledge the possibility of such paranormal phenomena (he says as much at the end of this), it's just that it's not exactly productive to respond to your girlfriend's fears that we'll all die in 2012 with, "Yep, we're probably doomed."
Source: Arbitrary Skepticism
Cite this Source
Respond and Acknowledge. (2016). Retrieved 2026, August 16, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/acknowledge/respond
Acknowledge & Respond. N.p., 2016. Web. 16 Aug. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/acknowledge/respond>.
Respond or Acknowledge. 2016. Accessed August 16, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/acknowledge/respond.
Google Ngram Viewer shows how "acknowledge" and "respond" have occurred on timeline