non-answer
Meaning
a reply that fails to address the question asked or that deliberately avoids giving a direct or clear response.
Structure
Usage
The politician's vague statement was widely criticized as a non-answer.
When asked about the budget, the manager gave a long non-answer that avoided the specifics.
Her email was a masterful non-answer, acknowledging my query without providing any useful information.
Etymology
The word 'non-answer' is a modern English compound formed by directly combining the Latin-derived negative prefix 'non-' with the native English noun 'answer.' The prefix 'non-' entered English via Old French from Latin 'non,' meaning "not," which itself is traced to the Proto-Indo-European negative particle 'ne-.' The noun 'answer' originates from Old English 'andswaru,' a compound of 'and-' (against) and '-swaru' (swearing), related to the act of swearing back in reply. The logic of the compound is transparently literal: a "not-answer" or "non-reply," describing a statement that, while technically a response, functionally negates the expectation of a substantive reply by being evasive or irrelevant.
Analysis
non: Latin origin, a prefix meaning "not," "the opposite of," or "absence of." It functions as a negative or privative prefix. answer: Old English origin, from 'andswaru,' meaning a reply or response. It functions as the root noun.