assistant

American  

[uh-sis-tuhnt] / əˈsɪs tənt /

noun

1. a person who assists or gives aid and support; helper.

2. a person who is subordinate to another in rank, function, etc.; one holding a secondary rank in an office or post.

   He was assistant to the office manager.

   Synonyms:

   adjutant, aide

3. something that aids and supplements another.

4. a faculty member of a college or university who ranks below an instructor and whose responsibilities usually include grading papers, supervising laboratories, and assisting in teaching.

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adjective

1. assisting; helpful.

2. serving in an immediately subordinate position; of secondary rank.

   an assistant coach.

assistant British  

/ əˈsɪstənt /

noun

1. 1. a person who assists, esp in a subordinate position

   2. ( as modifier )

      assistant manager

2. See shop assistant

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adjective

1. archaic helpful or useful as an aid

Other Word Forms

• nonassistant noun
• unassistant adjective

Etymology

Origin of assistant

First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English assistent, from Latin assistent-, stem of assistēns “standing by,” present participle of assistere “to stand by, help”; assist

Example Sentences

Roosevelt served for a year as an occasionally insubordinate assistant secretary of the Navy, then resigned at the start of the Spanish-American War to co-found the First U.S.

From The Wall Street Journal

Perhaps her biggest pleasure, however, is filming the traditional opening sequence with the owl who acts as her assistant and delivers the invitations.

From BBC

Kevin Boehnke, an assistant professor of anesthesiology at the University of Michigan Medical School, says the two studies “are a big deal.”

From The Wall Street Journal

Fatoke, the valedictorian, became a certified nursing assistant at Worcester Tech high school, and is now in college on a pre-med track.

From The Wall Street Journal

“It’s awful how much waste that is,” said Pamela Schweitzer, a pharmacist and former assistant U.S. surgeon general.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• aide
• apprentice
• associate
• attendant
• backup
• colleague
• companion
• deputy
• friend
• partner
• representative
• secretary