assail
Americanverb (used with object)
-
to attack vigorously or violently; assault.
-
to attack with arguments, criticism, ridicule, abuse, etc..
to assail one's opponent with slander.
-
to undertake with the purpose of mastering.
He assailed his studies with new determination.
-
to impinge upon; make an impact on; beset.
His mind was assailed by conflicting arguments.
The light assailed their eyes.
verb
-
to attack violently; assault
-
to criticize or ridicule vehemently, as in argument
-
to beset or disturb
his mind was assailed by doubts
-
to encounter with the intention of mastering
to assail a problem
to assail a difficult mountain ridge
Synonym Usage
See attack.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
-
assailablenessnoun
-
assailernoun
-
assailmentnoun
-
assailableadjective
-
unassailedadjective
-
unassailingadjective
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
assailsimple
-
assailssimple
-
have assailedperfect
-
has assailedperfect
-
am assailingprogressive
-
are assailingprogressive
-
is assailingprogressive
-
have been assailingperfect progressive
-
has been assailingperfect progressive
Past
-
assailedsimple
-
had assailedperfect
-
was assailingprogressive
-
were assailingprogressive
-
had been assailingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of assail
1175–1225; Middle English asaylen < Old French asalir < Late Latin assalīre, equivalent to Latin as- as- + salīre to leap, spring
Explanation
To assail is to attack or assault — with throwing stars, fists, words or, less tangibly but just as violently, with troubles or doubts. Believe it or not, assail evolved from the ancient Latin word assilire, which means "to jump on." So picture an attacker jumping on you, throwing punches and maybe some insults, too. Because assail also means to ridicule or heap your worries upon someone. As novelist Charlotte Bronte noted, “Conventionality is not morality. Self-righteousness is not religion. To attack the first is not to assail the last.” Think on that.
Vocabulary lists containing assail
The Vocabulary.com Top 1000
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
Othello
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
Vocabulary from the Magna Carta on its 800th Anniversary
Want to remember this word for good? Start your learning journey today with our library of interactive, themed word lists built by the experts at Vocabulary.com – we'll help you make the most of your study time!
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:
But sociologists in the scholar-activist mold note that Du Bois also believed in using sociological truth in the pursuit of activism, promising in 1906 to “never cease to protest and assail the ears of America.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 25, 2026
I watched this, sitting two rows behind Trump, as he turned and walked out to face the cameras and assail the process that had brought him there.
From Slate ● Jan. 10, 2025
In Germany emerged so-called "Herod games" in which people would reportedly stage mock attacks on churches and assail bystanders with inflated animal bladders to ridicule the cruel absurdity of the Judean king.
From Salon ● Dec. 23, 2024
Go ahead, criticize the Biden administration and assail its record.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 30, 2024
If we make no answer, the Enemy may move Men of his rule to assail King Brand, and Dáin also.’
From "The Fellowship of the Ring" by J.R.R. Tolkien
Meanwhile, the document assails America’s friends across the Atlantic.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 8, 2025
Baby Stone Gorillas, “Keep Goin” The white-hot L.A. rap group assails a soul sample on “Keep Goin,” its members jumping in and out of frame as they pass the baton with an uncanny chemistry.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 4, 2022
"Shaming personalizes political life; it assails individuals for injustices that are historically, socially and politically organized," political theorist Wendy Brown, who teaches social science at the Institute for Advanced Study, told Salon by email.
From Salon ● May 9, 2022
He assails the sanctification of Malcolm X, saying that his most prominent biographer, the late Columbia University professor Manning Marable, “accords his hero a stature in memory that he lacked in history.”
From New York Times ● Sep. 7, 2021
Secular instruction neither assails Christianity nor prejudices the learner against it; any more than sculpture assails jurisprudence, or than geometry prejudices the mind against music.
From English Secularism A Confession Of Belief by Holyoake, George Jacob
The competitive threat posed by cheaper Chinese substitutes has once again assailed semiconductor stocks, leading to dramatic falls in some of the biggest memory chip makers in Asia on Tuesday.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 28, 2026
The Royal Belgium Football Association assailed FIFA’s handling, citing a lack of explanation for the decision.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 6, 2026
Roberts once signed on to a Kagan dissent that assailed the shadow docket.
From Salon ● Jul. 3, 2026
Since then, Pratt has assailed Bass for being on a diplomatic trip to Ghana when the fire ignited, despite a forecast of dangerously high winds and “critical fire conditions.”
From Los Angeles Times ● May 21, 2026
But as she sat there amid her guests, she felt the old ennui overtaking her, the hopelessness which so often assailed her, which came upon her like an obsession, like something extraneous, independent of volition.
From "The Awakening" by Kate Chopin
Only in America can one get rich by assailing the wealthy.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 28, 2026
GM went full speed ahead, pouring money into national ad campaigns assailing things like men eating tofu.
From Slate ● Jun. 22, 2025
For his part, Fauci—a veteran of numerous appearances before Congress—held his ground, assailing accusations made against him as “seriously distorted,” “absolutely false,” and “simply preposterous.”
From Science Magazine ● Jun. 3, 2024
HLA supporters have spent weeks assailing Szabo’s previous cost estimates for the measure.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 16, 2024
The assailing hosts halted, foiled by the silent menace of rock and wall.
From "The Two Towers" by J. R. R. Tolkien
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.
