Meaning & use
concrete answer
Last updated
Meaning
nouncountable
A reply that gives definite, specific information or a firm decision instead of a vague or evasive one.
Grammar: Countable: I need a concrete answer. It is often used with get, give or want.
Patterns
- give someone a concrete answer
- a concrete answer about something
The manager could not give us a concrete answer about the delivery date.
I would like a concrete answer by Friday, so I can book the venue.
After weeks of waiting, they finally got a concrete answer from the bank.
Word forms
| plural | concrete answers |
|---|
Common combinations
- give a concrete answer
- Please give a concrete answer, not just a maybe.
- get a concrete answer
- We never got a concrete answer from the council.
- demand a concrete answer
- Residents demanded a concrete answer about the road closure.
- no concrete answer
- There is no concrete answer yet, because the tests are not finished.
- look for a concrete answer
- Scientists look for a concrete answer in the data.
Synonyms and how they differ
- definite answer
- It is almost interchangeable but stresses certainty, while concrete answer stresses specific detail.
- straight answer
- It is more informal and stresses honesty and directness, not only precision.
- firm answer
- It suggests a decision that will not change, which a concrete answer does not always do.
- clear answer
- It focuses on being easy to understand, whereas concrete implies real facts.
Opposites
Word family
- concrete adjective
- real, definite and specific
- concretely adverb
- in a definite, specific way
- concreteness noun
- the quality of being definite
- answer noun
- a reply
Commonly confused: concrete answer or concrete (building material)?
concrete answer vs concrete (building material)
The building material is a noun, and the word is stressed on the first syllable. In concrete answer, it is an adjective meaning specific.
Practice
I asked when the repair would be finished, but the plumber would not give me a ____.
Choose one answer.
A concrete answer is a specific, definite reply. Concerted means done together with effort, so it is a tempting but wrong word.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “concrete answer”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.