答える

[drewa]

Hi all~
I've recently come across 答える which means to reply/answer. The deal is that it's intransitive.

貴方が質問に答える順番です。(It's your turn to answer the question.)

Intransitive: Actions being done automatically, without your help.
Transitive: Descriptions of actions being done by yourself, you have a direct hand in the result of that verb.

Can you provide maybe a better translation of this verb?

 

[Toritoribe]

In grammar, an intransitive verb is a verb that has no direct object.

Intransitive verb - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A transitive verb is a verb that requires one or more objects in a sentence.

Transitive verb - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In Japanese grammar, the most common definition of transitive vs intransitive is whether a verb takes を as the object or not. (Although there are some other definitions.) 答える is intransitive in your example sentence IN JAPANESE GRAMMAR, but it's not odd to traslate it as a transitive verb in English.
(FYI, 答える can take を in a specific case (when the object means an answer, e.g. 間違った答えを答える, 意味を答える), so it also can be considered a transitive verb, though.)

 

[drewa]

Ahh, I see.
It's actually not that complicated
Thank you!