Synonyms

assail

American

[uh-seyl] / əˈseɪl /

verb (used with object)

to attack vigorously or violently; assault.
to attack with arguments, criticism, ridicule, abuse, etc..

to assail one's opponent with slander.

Synonyms:

malign, asperse
to undertake with the purpose of mastering.

He assailed his studies with new determination.
to impinge upon; make an impact on; beset.

His mind was assailed by conflicting arguments.
The light assailed their eyes.

assail British

/ əˈseɪl /

verb

to attack violently; assault
to criticize or ridicule vehemently, as in argument
to beset or disturb

his mind was assailed by doubts
to encounter with the intention of mastering

to assail a problem
to assail a difficult mountain ridge

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Synonym Usage

See attack.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Inflected Forms

Participles

Conjugated Forms

Present

Past

Future

Etymology

Origin of assail

1175–1225; Middle English asaylen < Old French asalir < Late Latin assalīre, equivalent to Latin as- as- + salīre to leap, spring

Explanation

To assail is to attack or assault — with throwing stars, fists, words or, less tangibly but just as violently, with troubles or doubts. Believe it or not, assail evolved from the ancient Latin word assilire, which means "to jump on." So picture an attacker jumping on you, throwing punches and maybe some insults, too. Because assail also means to ridicule or heap your worries upon someone. As novelist Charlotte Bronte noted, “Conventionality is not morality. Self-righteousness is not religion. To attack the first is not to assail the last.” Think on that.

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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.

Assail and assault, tho of the same original etymology, have diverged in meaning, so that assault alone retains the meaning of direct personal violence.

From English Synonyms and Antonyms With Notes on the Correct Use of Prepositions by Fernald, James Champlin

And terrors that Tartarus bred Assail each kingdom treblefold: A gangrel clan that someone flayed, Skirr thro' the dungeoned halls in flight And seek the caverns of the dead.

From Betelguese A Trip Through Hell by de Esque, Jean

Assail error; assail men's inventions; spare nothing but what is of God.

From Modern Skepticism: A Journey Through the Land of Doubt and Back Again A Life Story by Barker, Joseph

When sacred rites of fire are due, When changing moons are full or new, These fiends who bleeding flesh devour Assail us with resistless power.

From The Rámáyan of Válmíki, translated into English verse by Griffith, Ralph T. H. (Ralph Thomas Hotchkin)

Assail her dignity by so much as a breath?

From Phantom Fortune, a Novel by Braddon, M. E. (Mary Elizabeth)

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023