assort
Americanverb (used with object)
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assorts,
present (3rd person singular)
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assorted,
past participle, past
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assorting
present participle
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to distribute, place, or arrange according to kind or class; classify; sort.
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to furnish with a suitable assortment or variety of goods; make up of articles likely to suit a demand.
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Archaic. to group with others of the same or similar kind; connect or identify as of a similar class; associate (usually followed bywith ).
verb (used without object)
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assorts,
present (3rd person singular)
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assorted,
past participle, past
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assorting
present participle
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to agree in sort or kind; be matched or suited.
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to associate; consort.
verb
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(tr) to arrange or distribute into groups of the same type; classify
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to fit or fall into a class or group; match
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(tr) to supply with an assortment of merchandise
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(tr) to put in the same category as others; group
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rare to keep company; consort
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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assortsimple
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assortssimple
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have assortedperfect
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has assortedperfect
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am assortingprogressive
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are assortingprogressive
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is assortingprogressive
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have been assortingperfect progressive
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has been assortingperfect progressive
Past
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assortedsimple
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had assortedperfect
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was assortingprogressive
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were assortingprogressive
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had been assortingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of assort
From the Middle French word assorter, dating back to 1480–90. See as-, sort
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:
Genes that are located far apart on the same chromosome are likely to assort independently.
From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022
If genes are far apart and more likely to cross-over, then they are more likely to assort independently.
From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2018
This data helps retailers better understand their customers, leading to improvements in how they assort and design stores.Participation.
From Forbes ● Apr. 8, 2014
Many species, including primates and wolves, assort themselves by means of a dominance hierarchy.
From Scientific American ● Dec. 19, 2011
"This simple wreath may," she said, smiling as she surveyed herself; "but I believe that this little rustic person would not assort very well with the splendid ornament you describe."
From Mystery and Confidence (Vol. 1 of 3) A Tale by Elizabeth Pinchard
The values along each forked pathway can be multiplied because each gene assorts independently.
From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022
To be a "politic," clever fellow, a vast deal more humoring of prejudices, errors, and follies, is requisite, than at all assorts with true honesty of character.
From The International Monthly, Volume 5, No. 4, April, 1852 by Various
Then I proceed with the distinction, how ill fancy assorts with imagination, as instanced in Milton's Limbo.
From The Literary Remains of Samuel Taylor Coleridge by Henry Nelson Coleridge
And here lies the weakness of the epicurean and artistic attitude, that it assorts so ill with the harder and grimmer facts of life.
From At Large by Arthur Christopher Benson
She smiles, yet in a somewhat constrained fashion, that assorts ill with the inborn self-possession that as a rule characterizes her.
From Rossmoyne by Unknown
Inside were my elementary school report cards, two programs from concerts I played as a percussionist with the Rhode Island Philharmonic Youth Orchestra, and other assorted evidence of a childhood.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 29, 2026
After leaving professional campaign consulting in the mid-1990s, and making a substantial fortune in real estate, Reilly gave prolifically to various charities and assorted civic caucuses.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 26, 2026
Clover’s long, tasseled ears collect leaves, grass, and assorted debris on walks, and she scratches them out semiregularly.
From Slate ● Jun. 20, 2026
He was earning what for the mid-Victorian era counted as a small fortune, but no fewer than four households of assorted relatives relied on his largesse.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 1, 2026
Kim’s up to the part of Operation Distraction, when Brooke Vega and a dozen assorted punks descended upon the hospital.
From "If I Stay" by Gayle Forman
Note that we are assuming the interacting genes are not linked; they are still assorting independently into gametes.
From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022
Mr Baker seems to be randomly assorting clips for a montage, and the characters feel so real and idiosyncratic that it’s riveting even without a clear sense of plot or direction.
From Economist ● Sep. 13, 2017
The same is true of Comic-Con’s purpose for the publishers, studios and assorting celebrities and creators who are involved.
From Time ● Sep. 5, 2012
Even without the new additions, Yale custodians had years of editing and assorting ahead of them.
From Time Magazine Archive
The bundles of redeemed currency, having been passed to the assorting room, are delivered to the first assortment teller, who distributes them among the twelve or fifteen first assorters, taking receipts.
From The Galaxy, May, 1877 Vol. XXIII.—May, 1877.—No. 5. by Various
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.
