assault

[uh-sawlt]

noun

1. a sudden, violent attack; onslaught.

   an assault on tradition.

   Synonyms: aggression, invasion, charge, onset

2. Law.,  an unlawful physical attack upon another; an attempt or offer to do violence to another, with or without battery, as by holding a stone or club in a threatening manner.

3. Military.,  the stage of close combat in an attack.

4. rape.

verb (used with object)

1. to make an assault upon; attack; assail.

assault

/ əˈsɔːlt /

noun

1. a violent attack, either physical or verbal

2. law an intentional or reckless act that causes another person to expect to be subjected to immediate and unlawful violence Compare battery assault and battery

3. 1. the culmination of a military attack, in which fighting takes place at close quarters

   2. ( as modifier )

      assault troops

4. rape or attempted rape

verb

1. to make an assault upon

2. to rape or attempt to rape

Other Word Forms

• assaultable adjective
• assaulter noun
• counterassault verb (used with object)
• nonassault noun
• unassaultable adjective
• unassaulted adjective
• assaultive adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of assault¹

First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English asaut, from Old French, from Medieval Latin assaltus “attacked,” past participle of assalīre “to attack, jump on,” replacing Latin assilīre, both ultimately from Latin as- as- + salīre “to jump, leap”

Word History and Origins

Origin of assault¹

C13: from Old French asaut, from Vulgar Latin assaltus (unattested), from assalīre (unattested) to leap upon; see _assail

Synonym Study

See attack.

Example Sentences

Groves was convicted of second degree murder in October 2024 after he fired an assault rifle into a Mardi Gras block party, killing two adults, CBS reported.

Read more on BBC

Two men accused of plotting to kill Jewish people in Manchester planned to cause "untold harm" after buying assault rifles capable of killing hundreds of people, a court has heard.

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The initial Hamas assault left about 1,200 Israelis dead and more than 250 kidnapped.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Among those who died was Anthony Marks, 51, who was assaulted in August 2024 near London's King's Cross station while sheltering in a bin shed.

Read more on BBC

Combs, also formerly known as “Puffy,” “P. Diddy” and “Love,” was convicted in July in his high-profile federal criminal case, in which he was accused of sexually assaulting numerous women.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• aggression 
• charge 
• incursion 
• invasion 
• offensive 
• onslaught 
• rape 
• strike 
• violation