assai

¹ American  

[uh-sahy, ahs-sah-ee] / əˈsaɪ, ɑsˈsɑ i /

adverb

Music.

1. very.

   allegro assai (very quick).

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assai ² American  

[uh-sah-ee] / əˈsɑ i /

noun

1. any of several slender Brazilian palms of the genus Euterpe, especially E. edulis, a species bearing a purple fruit from which a beverage is made by infusion.

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assai ¹ British  

/ æˈsaɪ /

noun

1. any of several Brazilian palm trees of the genus Euterpe, esp E. edulis, that have small dark purple fleshy edible fruit

2. a beverage made from the fruit of this tree

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assai ² British  

/ æˈsaɪ /

adverb

1. music (usually preceded by a musical direction) very

   allegro assai

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Etymology

Origin of assai¹

First recorded in 1715–25; from Italian: literally, “enough,”ultimately from Latin ad “(up) to” + satis “enough.” See asset

Origin of assai²

1895–1900; < Portuguese < Tupi assaí

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

assai

Dante's Angel of Purity welcomes wayfarers upon the Pilgrim Mount "in voce assai più che la nostra, viva."

From Letters of Catherine Benincasa by Saint of Siena Catherine

His first words, as he gained sensibility, were: "Chi per la patria muore Vessuto ha assai!"

From The Son of Monte-Cristo, Volume I by Jules Lermina

Ariosto is right in saying that the dark side of our mortal life predominates, so full it is of this evil: questa assai più oscura che serena Vita mortal, tutta d'invidia piena.

From The Essays of Arthur Schopenhauer; The Art of Literature by T. Bailey (Thomas Bailey) Saunders

Their animal food consisted chiefly of young birds, lizards, tree-frogs, and grubs; and their vegetable food, of some plums and other fruits, and the inside leaves of the assai palm, and various nuts.

From The Wanderers Adventures in the Wilds of Trinidad and Orinoco by Perat

Neither have they when certain sorts of fruit are ripe, especially soft fruits, such as berries and the pulpy nuts of several kinds of palms, as the pupunha and assai.

From Afloat in the Forest A Voyage among the Tree-Tops by Mayne Reid