prompt
Quick and without delay.
- Her prompt reply arrived just minutes after I sent the invitation.
- Thanks to the crew's prompt action, the small galley fire was out within seconds.
Similar: quick, swift, speedy
prompt or punctual?
Punctual is about keeping to a set time. Prompt is about acting quickly, with no delay.
Because both words are praise for not being late, children use them as if they meant the same. One is about the clock; the other is about speed.
Punctual needs an agreed time. A punctual pupil is in the classroom when the bell goes at 8.45, and a punctual train leaves at exactly the time printed on the board. Without a set time, punctual has nothing to measure against.
Prompt is about responding quickly. If Grandma sends a birthday present, a prompt thank-you letter goes off the next day rather than next month. When a pupil feels unwell and a teacher phones home straight away, that is prompt action, even though no time was ever agreed.
Both words, side by side
punctual
Arriving or doing things exactly on time.
- Mr Byrne was so punctual that you could set your watch by the moment he opened the classroom door.
- The island ferry is always punctual, leaving at nine on the dot whatever the weather.
Similar: prompt, timely
Why it costs marks
In closest-meaning questions, prompt is often paired with words like swift or immediate, and punctual with on time. A child who thinks they are the same word can easily pick the option that matches the wrong one.
Definitions and example sentences on this page are the ones a child sees inside Wordrealm, taken from our list of over 1,100 words. It is free to browse, with nothing to sign up for.
Sitting the 11+ in Kent, Medway or Buckinghamshire?
Plain-English guides to each test, from the councils’ own pages: Kent Test · Medway Test · Bucks Secondary Transfer Test