assassinate

[uh-sas-uh-neyt]

verb (used with object)

assassinated, assassinating 

1. to kill suddenly or secretively, especially a prominent person; murder premeditatedly and treacherously.

   Synonyms: slay

2. to destroy or harm treacherously and viciously.

   to assassinate a person's character.

assassinate

/ əˈsæsɪˌneɪt /

verb

1. to murder (a person, esp a public or political figure), usually by a surprise attack

2. to ruin or harm (a person's reputation, etc) by slander

Other Word Forms

• assassination noun
• assassinative adjective
• assassinator noun
• unassassinated adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of assassinate¹

First recorded in 1590–1600; assassin + -ate ¹

Example Sentences

The assassinated mayor's widow, however, distanced her husband's movement from the demonstration on Saturday.

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The assassinated mayor's widow, however, distanced her husband's movement from the protests on Saturday.

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Naming his grandfather, who was assassinated in 1963, as his hero, Schlossberg told Vogue that JFK's administration was "a blueprint for how progressivism can work in America".

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A security source told the agency she had been assassinated because she had been accused of filming jihadists "for the Malian army".

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At the Central Intelligence Agency, planners revived the plot to assassinate Fidel Castro.

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Related Words

• execute 
• gun down www.thesaurus.com
• kill 
• slaughter 
• slay