asseverate
Americanverb (used with object)
verb
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of asseverate
First recorded in 1785–95; < Latin assevērātus “spoken in earnest” (past participle of assevērāre ), equivalent to as- as- + sevēr- ( see severe) + -ātus -ate 1
Explanation
To asseverate is to declare or affirm something with confidence and seriousness. When you asseverate, you're not just making a statement; you're saying it with such certainty that there's no room for confusion or doubt. The word comes from the Latin root that means "to affirm or maintain." When you asseverate, you speak with conviction. It's like planting your feet and saying, "This is how it is — no doubt about it!" A witness who gives their testimony in the courtroom may asseverate in order to let everyone know that they are telling the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
Vocabulary lists containing asseverate
The Turn of the Screw
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List 9
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List 9
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
—At this, the Boy suffered some Confusion, then to asseverate, My Tutor is deceased, Sir.
From "The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation, Volume II: The Kingdom on the Waves" by M.T. Anderson
Why merely say something, when they can declare, assert, expostulate, announce, or asseverate it?
From "Woe Is I" by Patricia T. O'Conner
No one appeared to think it worth while to asseverate the fact, for it was self-evident.
From Black Ivory by Pearson, Francis B.
How wise was his nightly habit, as he settled himself in bed before falling asleep, to asseverate with a sigh of thankfulness that no man living was more contented and healthier than he!
From Apologia Diffidentis by Dalton, O. M. (Ormonde Maddock)
"Wh-why, nobudy ever heard me talkin' things that's tol' in secret," Mike made haste to asseverate.
From The Lookout Man by Bower, B. M.
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
