assert

American  

[uh-surt] / əˈsɜrt /

verb (used with object)

• asserts,
  present (3rd person singular)
• asserted,
  past participle,  past
• asserting
  present participle

1. 

   to state with assurance, confidence, or force; state strongly or positively; affirm; aver.

   He asserted his innocence of the crime.

   Synonyms:

   maintain, avow, asseverate

   Antonyms:

   deny

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

   Synonyms:

   support, uphold

3. to state as having existence; affirm; postulate.

   to assert a first cause as necessary.

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idioms

1. assert oneself, to insist on one's rights, declare one's views forcefully, etc..

   The candidate finally asserted himself about property taxes.

assert British  

/ əˈsɜːt /

verb

1. to insist upon (rights, claims, etc)

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

3. to put (oneself) forward in an insistent manner

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Synonym Usage

See declare. See maintain.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• asserter
  noun
• assertor
  noun
• misassert
  verb (used with object)
• overassert
  verb (used with object)
• preassert
  verb (used with object)
• reassert
  verb (used with object)
• assertible
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• asserting
  present
• asserted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• assert
  simple
• asserts
  simple
• have asserted
  perfect
• has asserted
  perfect
• am asserting
  progressive
• are asserting
  progressive
• is asserting
  progressive
• have been asserting
  perfect progressive
• has been asserting
  perfect progressive

Past

• asserted
  simple
• had asserted
  perfect
• was asserting
  progressive
• were asserting
  progressive
• had been asserting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will assert
  simple
• will have asserted
  perfect
• will be asserting
  progressive
• will have been asserting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of assert

First recorded in 1595–1605; from Latin assertus “joined to, defended, claimed,” past participle of asserere “to join to, defend,” from as- as- + serere “to connect” ( cf. series)

Explanation

Asserting is all about standing up for what you believe. You might assert an opinion, your innocence, or even your authority over someone else. The verb assert can be used for both opinions and for oneself. When asked, you can politely assert your desire to go to the amusement park for your birthday. If no one listens to you, you can assert yourself and forcefully state that you really want to go to the amusement park for your birthday. If that fails, you should just take yourself to the amusement park for your birthday. And get better friends.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

assert asserts asserted asserting

I have a truth for you: Men are socialized to assert themselves and unabashedly pursue what they desire.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026

"We want Europe to assert its ambition in crewed spaceflight," he said.

From Barron's ● Sep. 10, 2026

Central Command, a significant escalation as the fight to assert control over the Strait of Hormuz intensifies.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 5, 2026

West asserts that Gilkar and Ahmed pressured her to terminate the pregnancy; Gilkar and Ahmed assert that West initially agreed that termination would be best and even made an appointment before changing her mind.

From Slate ● Aug. 20, 2026

That’s entitlement: his mother permits that casual incivility because she wants him to learn to assert himself with people in positions of authority.

From "Outliers" by Malcolm Gladwell

Golden also asserts that Oxford and Travis were covering for the original suspect, Jeramy Roebuck.

From Slate ● Sep. 17, 2026

“East of the River” asserts her love of women, starting with her mom, an immigrant born in Uruapan, Michoacán.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026

Your editorial asserts that “data centers also generate scant pollution.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 7, 2026

He said: "The Secretary of State asserts that disclosure would harm national security."

From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2026

In spirit, it asserts solidarity with the “least of these among us.”

From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander

Yousef Pezeshkian, the president’s son and adviser, asserted in August, “Our survival does not depend on enrichment. We won’t die if we don’t enrich uranium.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026

Sacoolas left the UK after diplomatic immunity was asserted on her behalf.

From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2026

The Smithsonian asserted it had control over personnel matters, but Sajet later resigned, citing the museum's best interests.

From Barron's ● Sep. 8, 2026

The majority concluded that her asserted injury probably does not cross Article 3’s threshold.

From Slate ● Sep. 1, 2026

Devon is sometimes considered the most beautiful school in New England, and even on this dismal afternoon its power was asserted.

From "A Separate Peace" by John Knowles

All of them have top-flight or international experience, as well as physicality to their game, but even those additions did little to prevent Arsenal from asserting their superiority on Friday night.

From BBC ● Aug. 21, 2026

The ICC expressed concern over those withdrawals, asserting that such countries risked undermining the collective pursuit of justice.

From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026

Here we meet Kelly Macdonald, suppressing her Scottish accent as tough but tender Sheriff Kerry, asserting her jurisdictional rights.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

People have to get more comfortable with asserting things that they believe to be true about the Constitution, right?

From Slate ● Aug. 10, 2026

Jordan College was scoured from the dustiest box-room to the darkest cellar, and so were Gabriel and St. Michael’s, till the heads of all the colleges issued a joint protest asserting their ancient rights.

From "The Golden Compass" by Philip Pullman

Related Words

• affirm
• allege
• argue
• cite
• claim
• contend
• defend
• proclaim
• profess
• say
• stress
• uphold