assessor

American  

[uh-ses-er] / əˈsɛs ər /

noun

1. a person who makes assessments, especially for purposes of taxation.

2. an adviser or assistant to a judge, especially one serving as a specialist in some field.

3. Archaic.

   1. a person who shares another's position, rank, or dignity.

   2. a person sitting beside another in an advisory capacity; an advisory associate.

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assessor British  

/ əˈsɛsə, ˌæsɛˈsɔːrɪəl /

noun

1. a person who evaluates the merits, importance, etc, of something, esp (in Britain) work prepared as part of a course of study

2. a person who values property for taxation

3. a person who estimates the value of damage to property for insurance purposes

4. a person with technical expertise called in to advise a court on specialist matters

5. a person who shares another's position or rank, esp in an advisory capacity

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Other Word Forms

• assessorial adjective
• assessorship noun

Etymology

Origin of assessor

1350–1400; Middle English assessour < Medieval Latin assessor one who assesses taxes, Latin: a judge's helper. See assess, -tor

Explanation

An assessor is a person whose job involves determining how much a house or building is worth. After an assessor establishes the value of a property, it can be taxed appropriately. An assessor, sometimes called a "tax assessor," works for a city or county, aiding the process of collecting taxes from people who own property there. In order to figure out how much someone owes, an assessor compares the person's house to the others in the neighborhood and tallies up things like square footage, number of rooms, and acres of land. In Latin an assessor is "an assistant," though in Late Latin it means "one who assesses taxes."

Example Sentences

He said he would "fix this mess" by appointing a chief assessor to ensure greater stability.

From BBC • Apr. 1, 2026

A state tax tribunal ruled that the Pung estate was entitled to the exemption, but the local assessor appealed and reported the property as delinquent.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 23, 2026

From there, The Times merged assessor parcel numbers of destroyed homes from the Cal Fire data with those of rebuilt homes from local and state building data obtained from each jurisdiction.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 30, 2025

Their mysterious assessor, however, who play-acts stages of childhood without a hint of where the borders lie, seems intent on disrupting their cautious hope.

From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 21, 2025

“The regulatory entomologists ... function as prosecutor, judge and jury, tax assessor and collector and sheriff to enforce their own orders,” said Connecticut entomologist Neely Turner.

From "Silent Spring" by Rachel Carson

Related Words

• authority
• court
• critic
• expert
• inspector
• justice
• referee