assort
Americanverb (used with object)
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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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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:
Therefore, genes that are far apart on the same chromosome are likely to still assort independently because of recombination events that occurred in the intervening chromosomal space.
From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022
It is the chromosomes, not the individual genes, that assort independently.
From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2018
We could try to assort that bunch top-to-bottom, from the front of the train to the caboose.
From Forbes ● Jul. 14, 2015
Many species, including primates and wolves, assort themselves by means of a dominance hierarchy.
From Scientific American ● Dec. 19, 2011
Not the objects, I am persuaded, of the Understanding; and yet we take as strong Impressions of them as if we could compare and assort them in a syllogism.
From Eighteenth Century Essays on Shakespeare by Smith, David Nichol
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
The "Hall" would likewise appear to be divided into two tenements, which but ill assorts with its original appropriation; though we are not to consider these deviations as affecting the architectural character or identity.
From The Mirror of Literature, Amusement, and Instruction Volume 20, No. 573, October 27, 1832 by Various
The true teacher after large preparation assorts his material, and selects such matter as is appropriate to his own class.
From Organizing and Building Up the Sunday School Modern Sunday School Manuals by Hurlbut, Jesse Lyman
The crowd assorts itself as the people do who line the barriers at a bull-fight: those who have parasols, to the shadow; those who have barely a hat, to the sun.
From The Cup of Trembling and Other Stories by Foote, Mary Hallock
Clover’s long, tasseled ears collect leaves, grass, and assorted debris on walks, and she scratches them out semiregularly.
From Slate ● Jun. 20, 2026
Swansea Crown Court heard the lamb products of Kismet Kebabs Ltd, based in Essex, contained little actual lamb, but a mix of fat, skin, assorted meats and mechanically reclaimed meat products.
From BBC ● Jun. 6, 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
Then, he pursued assorted careers in indie publishing, urban planning and entrepreneurial research before conclusively binding himself to a literary life.
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 23, 2026
In the bathroom, Kim throws soap, shampoo, towels, and other assorted items into a pillowcase.
From "First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers" by Loung Ung
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
A dejected and cast-down woman was assorting the despairing contents of the basket with a look of desolation.
From The Witches of New York by Doesticks, Q. K. Philander
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.
