assessment

American  

[uh-ses-muhnt] / əˈsɛs mənt /

noun

• assessments
  plural

1. the act of assessing; appraisal; evaluation.

2. an official valuation of property for the purpose of levying a tax; an assigned value.

3. an amount assessed as payable.

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assessment British  

/ əˈsɛsmənt /

noun

1. the act of assessing, esp (in Britain) the evaluation of a student's achievement on a course

2. an amount determined as payable

3. a valuation set on taxable property, income, etc

4. evaluation; estimation

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assessment Cultural  

1. The appraisal of property for the purposes of taxation.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• misassessment
  noun
• overassessment
  noun
• reassessment
  noun
• self-assessment
  noun
• proassessment
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• assessments
  plural

Etymology

Origin of assessment

First recorded in 1530–40; assess + -ment

Explanation

Assessment is a word you hear a lot around schools — an assessment is an evaluation, and one type of assessment is used to measure what someone knows or has learned. Tests and term papers can be assessment tools. More than just students are given assessments. You might bring your dad's plastic gnome collection to an expert for an assessment and find out it's worth all of $15.35. You might make a quick assessment of a sticky situation — say it's you, a tasty ham sandwich, and your hungry dog— and decide to run.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

assessment assessments

Some people believe if the transfer happened at least seven years prior the assessment, it will not be counted, but that is a myth linked to the rules on inheritance tax.

From BBC ● Sep. 13, 2026

That assessment did not come from Taco Bell.

From Salon ● Sep. 13, 2026

Altman and Elon Musk, who owns xAI, both agreed with Amodei's assessment.

From Barron's ● Sep. 13, 2026

When I talked with co-founders and husband-and-wife duo Jason and Emily McCarthy leading up to the 25th anniversary, I asked if that was a fair assessment.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 11, 2026

After all of the recent rejections, this assessment of my potential ignited a spark that I thought had long since been extinguished.

From "Proud" by Ibtihaj Muhammad

Positive responses were defined as receiving interview requests, a mix of phone and video screenings, positive email responses or assessments to be completed.

From MarketWatch ● Sep. 11, 2026

"With several lives lost and many injured, the toll remains provisional. The minister offered condolences, affirmed solidarity with families, and ordered assessments of affected schools to ensure learning continuity."

From BBC ● Sep. 10, 2026

National climate assessments are important because their projections can inform federal infrastructure planning, risk assessments, regulations, disaster preparedness and cost-benefit analyses, including from hazards such as wildfires, floods, drought and sea-level rise.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 10, 2026

Weapons stored inside those underground sites are likely to be well-preserved, according to Israeli military assessments.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 10, 2026

I also knew that the women’s national team members went to camp at the ranch every four to six weeks for skills training and assessments, known as verifications.

From "Courage to Soar" by Simone Biles

Related Words

• appraisal
• estimate
• judgment