Synonyms

assassinate

American

[uh-sas-uh-neyt] / əˈsæs əˌneɪt /

verb (used with object)

assassinated, assassinating

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

Synonyms:

slay
to destroy or harm treacherously and viciously.

to assassinate a person's character.

assassinate British

/ əˈsæsɪˌneɪt /

verb

to murder (a person, esp a public or political figure), usually by a surprise attack
to ruin or harm (a person's reputation, etc) by slander

"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

Other Word Forms

assassination noun
assassinative adjective
assassinator noun
unassassinated adjective

Etymology

Origin of assassinate

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

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.

The 79-year-old installed himself as chairman of a hand-picked board to lead the center, originally named after president John F. Kennedy, who was assassinated in 1963.

From Barron's

The Church Committee recommended, and Congress subsequently enacted, dozens of sweeping reforms to foreign intelligence collection activities, as well as restraints on future efforts by the U.S. government to assassinate people.

From Salon

Gosh, I was sick of that date, and it wasn’t just because that is when our sixteenth president was assassinated.

From Literature

In 2025, replying to AFP's question, Putin said he did "not even wish to discuss" the idea Israel might assassinate Iran's Khamenei.

From Barron's

One of his daughters claimed he was assassinated by people inside the system.

From The Wall Street Journal

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