exert
[ ig-zurt ]
/ ɪgˈzɜrt /
Save This Word!
verb (used with object)
to put forth or into use, as power; exercise, as ability or influence; put into vigorous action: to exert every effort.
to put (oneself) into strenuous, vigorous action or effort.
QUIZ
THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?
Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.
Question 1 of 7
In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…
Origin of exert
1650–60; <Latin ex(s)ertus, past participle of exserere to thrust out, equivalent to ex-ex-1 + ser(ere) to bind together + -tus past participle suffix
OTHER WORDS FROM exert
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
How to use exert in a sentence
British Dictionary definitions for exert
exert
/ (ɪɡˈzɜːt) /
verb (tr)
to use (influence, authority, etc) forcefully or effectively
to apply (oneself) diligently; make a strenuous effort
Derived forms of exert
exertion, nounexertive, adjectiveWord Origin for exert
C17 (in the sense: push forth, emit): from Latin exserere to thrust out, from ex- 1 + serere to bind together, entwine
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012