assert
Americanverb (used with object)
-
asserts,
present (3rd person singular)
-
asserted,
past participle, past
-
asserting
present participle
-
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
-
to maintain or defend (claims, rights, etc.).
-
to state as having existence; affirm; postulate.
to assert a first cause as necessary.
idioms
verb
-
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
Synonym Usage
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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asserternoun
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assertornoun
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misassertverb (used with object)
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overassertverb (used with object)
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preassertverb (used with object)
-
reassertverb (used with object)
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assertibleadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
assertsimple
-
assertssimple
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have assertedperfect
-
has assertedperfect
-
am assertingprogressive
-
are assertingprogressive
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is assertingprogressive
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have been assertingperfect progressive
-
has been assertingperfect progressive
Past
-
assertedsimple
-
had assertedperfect
-
was assertingprogressive
-
were assertingprogressive
-
had been assertingperfect progressive
Future
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.
Vocabulary lists containing assert
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
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Jim Burke's Academic Vocabulary List
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Words That Could Go Either Way: Synonyms for "Maybe"
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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.
See Examples For:
"We want Europe to assert its ambition in crewed spaceflight," he said.
From Barron's ● Sep. 10, 2026
The prime minister said on Monday that King Felipe VI would visit Ceuta "as soon as conditions allow", seen as an attempt to assert Spanish authority over the exclave.
From BBC ● Sep. 1, 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
He reimposed the blockade in July after Iran started attacking ships again to assert its control over the strait.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 11, 2026
The one determined to assert her independence and throw her arms around life.
From "The Book of Unknown Americans" by Cristina Henríquez
Raman, who was recently endorsed by DSA’s L.A. chapter, asserts that fixing street lights and potholes isn’t an ideological endeavor, however, and — not unlike Pratt — has framed herself as an agent for change.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026
He said: "The Secretary of State asserts that disclosure would harm national security."
From BBC ● Sep. 3, 2026
But like its creator, Schoenbrun’s film asserts that media can be integral to personal identity.
From Salon ● Aug. 26, 2026
It asserts that the ABA’s accreditation wing isn’t sufficiently independent of its profession.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 21, 2026
In spirit, it asserts solidarity with the “least of these among us.”
From "The New Jim Crow" by Michelle Alexander
The defense ministry has asserted the legality of its operations in Guaviare.
From Barron's ● Sep. 3, 2026
The item asserted that some Medicare and Medicaid cancer patients wait longer for treatment than those with private insurance.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026
In a late-night legal filing, OpenAI asserted that Apple filed a baseless lawsuit in an attempt to hamper its ability to recruit new employees and ultimately stall its effort to develop competing technology.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026
The majority concluded that her asserted injury probably does not cross Article 3’s threshold.
From Slate ● Sep. 1, 2026
In her enormously self-serving and revisionist autobiography, she asserted that she agreed to make the film only after Hitler promised to keep Goebbels at bay.
From "The Boys in the Boat: Nine Americans and Their Epic Quest for Gold at the 1936 Berlin Olympics" by Daniel James Brown
OpenAI filed a legal response asserting that Apple filed a baseless trade secret theft lawsuit to hamper OpenAI’s recruiting and stall its AI work.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 1, 2026
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
But President Claudia Sheinbaum refused to comply, asserting that U.S. authorities did not provide sufficient proof of his alleged crimes.
From Los Angeles Times ● 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
The occasional dissenter accuses me of betraying my fellow officers and being a rat, asserting that “what goes on in corrections should stay in corrections.”
From "Newjack: Guarding Sing Sing" by Ted Conover
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
