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:
Perfectly unlinked genes correspond to the frequencies predicted by Mendel to assort independently in a dihybrid cross.
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
The colours for the conical stripes may be any two or four colours, which assort well together; or each may be different.
From My Knitting Book by Miss Lambert
The values along each forked pathway can be multiplied because each gene assorts independently.
From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022
She assorts and arranges her goods by the law of the winds and the tides.
From Time and Change by John Burroughs
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
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
This introduction of white smooth stone, assorts ill with the dull reddish-brown mass all around it, and produces a glaring and disagreeable effect.
From Architectural Antiquities of Normandy by John Sell Cotman
Each of the five models is offered in assorted colors.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 31, 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
The guest list was as eclectic as the format: fellow stand-ups, YouTubers, chess players and assorted internet personalities, each drawn into Raina's loose, improvisational orbit.
From BBC ● Apr. 10, 2026
The delivered price of aluminum in the U.S., with assorted charges and the tariff factored in, is $6,100 a metric ton, up 83% from a year ago.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 2, 2026
We clean off shelves jammed with empty cans of sealant, and half-full cans of paint, and tubs filled with assorted nails and screws.
From "Red Flags and Butterflies" by Sheryl Azzam
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
He watched the mail, and in assorting the letters, looked anxiously for the Western postmark.
From The Homesteader A Novel by Oscar Micheaux
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.
