What does it mean when a person answer your question with another question?

Answer 1

It's often a "fogging" technique to confound the questioner and buy time before responding to the original question. A classic self-assertiveness strategy; useful if used sparingly when being, for example, unduly pressured to answer a possibly intrusive or bullying question.

Or, it could be that the person genuinely wants more information, some clarification of key points, or whatever, in order to be able to provide a fuller, more carefully considered answer.

So, maybe the person is being awkward because s/ he wishes to avoid the question; or s/ he simply wants to give as good an answer as possible. Determining which is largely a matter of considering the question's context & the relationship between questioner and respondee.

Answer 2

As was true for Socrates, isn't there power in encouraging people to think something through?

To avoid answering the question.

To find out more information about the question being asked so the answer can be adjusted to fit.

Answer 3

It could imply that they are avoiding giving a direct answer or trying to shift the focus of the conversation back on you. It may also suggest they are uncertain or seeking more clarification before providing a response.

Answer 4

This method was developed during Socrates days of philosophy. So I suppose you could describe them as being Socratic, or using the Socratic Method.