assert

[uh-surt]

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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR assert ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used with object)

to state with assurance, confidence, or force; state strongly or positively; affirm; aver: He asserted his innocence of the crime.

to maintain or defend (claims, rights, etc.).

to state as having existence; affirm; postulate: to assert a first cause as necessary.

Idioms

assert oneself, to insist on one's rights, declare one's views forcefully, etc.: The candidate finally asserted himself about property taxes.

Origin of assert

1595–1605; < Latin assertus joined to, defended, claimed (past participle of asserere), equivalent to as- as- + ser- (see series) + -tus past participle suffix

Related formsas·sert·er, as·ser·tor, nounas·sert·i·ble, adjectivemis·as·sert, verb (used with object)o·ver·as·sert, verb (used with object)pre·as·sert, verb (used with object)re·as·sert, verb (used with object)

Synonyms for assert

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR assert ON THESAURUS.COM

1. asseverate, avow, maintain. 2. uphold, support.

Synonym study

1. See declare. 2. See maintain.

Antonyms for assert

1. deny.

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for assert

contend, claim, stress, profess, uphold, affirm, defend, proclaim, say, press, argue, allege, cite, attest, predicate, avow, vindicate, advance, avouch, pronounce

Examples from the Web for assert

Contemporary Examples of assert

As leaders across the world continue to assert, the war is far from won.
Millions Promised for Ebola Not Adding Up
Abby Haglage
November 25, 2014
I was forced to bring two male “identity verifiers” to assert who I was, despite the fact that I carried my ID card with me.
Saudi Activist Manal Al-Sharif on Why She Removed the Veil
Manal Al Sharif, Advancing Human Rights
October 30, 2014
I yo AIRGORDON and the rest of my Yo friends when I wake up for no discernible reason, other than to assert my existence.
The Zen of Yo
Dale Eisinger
August 2, 2014
In fact, some assert that killing whales is necessary to prevent world starvation.
Welcome to Japan’s Whale Week, Featuring Curried Whale Meat And Exploding Harpoons
Angela Erika Kubo, Jake Adelstein
June 12, 2014
In a previous attempt to assert direct control over the Internet, the FCC lost in court.
The FCC Must Ignore the Silly ‘Net Neutrality’ Advocates
Nick Gillespie
May 19, 2014

Historical Examples of assert

They have begun so cruelly with me, that I have not spirit enough to assert my own negative.
Clarissa, Volume 1 (of 9)
Samuel Richardson
More, he dared believe, and to assert boldly, that she loved him.
Within the Law
Marvin Dana
It was an insult to the divine powers to assert that they had taken the part of a race horse.
Thoroughbreds
W. A. Fraser
All admit or assert that the lance is in this warfare the better weapon.
The Story of the Malakand Field Force
Sir Winston S. Churchill
But be your resolution what it will, do not by any means repeat to them, that you will not assert your right.
Clarissa, Volume 2 (of 9)
Samuel Richardson

British Dictionary definitions for assert

assert

verb (tr)

to insist upon (rights, claims, etc)

(may take a clause as object) to state to be true; declare categorically

to put (oneself) forward in an insistent manner

Derived Formsasserter or assertor, nounassertible, adjective

Word Origin for assert

C17: from Latin asserere to join to oneself, from serere to join

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

Word Origin and History for assert

c.1600, "declare," from Latin assertus, past participle of asserere "claim, maintain, affirm" (see assertion). Related: Asserted; asserting. To assert oneself "stand up for one's rights" is recorded from 1879.