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as·sign·ment
As•sign•ment.
An assignment is a task that someone is given to do, usually as part of their job.
An assignment is also a piece of academic work given to students.
In American English, an assignment is also a piece of work given to students to do at home.
Work given to schoolchildren to do at home is also called homework .
Be Careful! Homework is an uncountable noun. You do not talk about 'homeworks' or 'a homework'. Note that you do not say ' I have made my homework '. You say 'I have done my homework'.
- admeasurement
- all nighter
- annual training
- anthropopathism
- anthropopathy
- anthropophuism
- anthropopsychism
- appointment
- apportionment
- apportionment (air)
- assignation
- Assignment of dower
- assibilation
- Assideanism
- assiduously
- assiduousness
- assignability
- assigned risk
- assimilability
- assimilable
- assimilating
- assimilation
- assimilationism
- assimilationist
- assimilative
- assimilator
- assimilatory
- Assimulation
- Assiniboine
- Assiniboine Mount
- Assiniboine River
- assistance dog
- assistance mechanism
- assigned to you
- assigning to
- Assignment (computer science)
- Assignment (education)
- Assignment (law)
- Assignment Action Number
- Assignment and Analysis of Broadband Spectra
- Assignment and Justification Questionnaire
- Assignment and Lease
- Assignment and Licensing System
- Assignment and Transmittal Document
- Assignment Area
- Assignment Availability Code
- Assignment by Choice
- Assignment Capsule
- Assignment Capsules
- Assignment Clause, Life Insurance
- Assignment Completed
- Assignment Consideration
- Assignment Control Authority
- Assignment Control Number
- Assignment Coordination Group
- Assignment Data Card
- Assignment Date
- Assignment Eligibility & Availability
- Assignment for benefit of creditors
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Definition of assign
(Entry 1 of 2)
transitive verb
Definition of assign (Entry 2 of 2)
- intrust
ascribe , attribute , assign , impute , credit mean to lay something to the account of a person or thing.
ascribe suggests an inferring or conjecturing of cause, quality, authorship.
attribute suggests less tentativeness than ascribe , less definiteness than assign .
assign implies ascribing with certainty or after deliberation.
impute suggests ascribing something that brings discredit by way of accusation or blame.
credit implies ascribing a thing or especially an action to a person or other thing as its agent, source, or explanation.
Examples of assign in a Sentence
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'assign.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Verb and Noun
Middle English, from Anglo-French assigner , from Latin assignare , from ad- + signare to mark, from signum mark, sign
13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
15th century, in the meaning defined above
Phrases Containing assign
- pre - assign
Dictionary Entries Near assign
Cite this entry.
“Assign.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary , Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/assign. Accessed 26 May. 2024.
Kids Definition
Kids definition of assign, legal definition, legal definition of assign.
Legal Definition of assign (Entry 2 of 2)
More from Merriam-Webster on assign
Nglish: Translation of assign for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of assign for Arabic Speakers
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Definition of 'assignment'
assignment in American English
Assignment in british english, examples of 'assignment' in a sentence assignment, related word partners assignment, trends of assignment.
View usage over: Since Exist Last 10 years Last 50 years Last 100 years Last 300 years
Browse alphabetically assignment
- assigned randomly
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Related terms of assignment
- seat assignment
- tough assignment
- writing assignment
- challenging assignment
- difficult assignment
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[ uh - sahyn ]
verb (used with object)
to assign rooms at a hotel.
to assign homework.
to assign one to guard duty.
to assign a day for a meeting.
Synonyms: determine , fix
to assign a cause.
Synonyms: offer , show , advance , allege , adduce
to assign a contract.
- Military. to place permanently on duty with a unit or under a commander.
verb (used without object)
- Law. to transfer property, especially in trust or for the benefit of creditors.
my heirs and assigns.
to assign an expert to the job
to assign advertising to an expert
to assign a day for the meeting
to assign a stone cross to the Vikings
- to transfer (one's right, interest, or title to property) to someone else
- also intr law (formerly) to transfer (property) to trustees so that it may be used for the benefit of creditors
- military to allocate (men or materials) on a permanent basis Compare attach
- computing to place (a value corresponding to a variable) in a memory location
- law a person to whom property is assigned; assignee
Discover More
Derived forms.
- asˈsigner , noun
- asˈsignably , adverb
- asˌsignaˈbility , noun
- asˈsignable , adjective
Other Words From
- as·signer Chiefly Law. as·sign·or [ uh, -sahy-, nawr, as-, uh, -, nawr ] , noun
- misas·sign verb
- nonas·signed adjective
- preas·sign verb (used with object)
- preas·signed adjective
- reas·sign verb (used with object)
- self-as·signed adjective
- unas·signed adjective
- well-as·signed adjective
Word History and Origins
Origin of assign 1
Synonym Study
Example sentences.
It is designed to listen to meetings with multiple participants and will parse discussion patterns to produce informative synopses and assign post-meeting action items.
Such randomized, double-blinded controlled trials randomly assign patients to receive a drug or a placebo, and don’t reveal to participants or doctors who is getting which.
That AI could pore over an astronaut’s symptoms and then recommend medical tests, make diagnoses and assign treatments.
So I rose beyond cleaning, to working as an operational dispatcher for cabin services in the American Airlines traffic control center, assign cleaning crews to each incoming aircraft.
Ideally, the Mars spaceship would be equipped with artificial intelligence that could consider an astronaut’s symptoms, recommend medical tests, make diagnoses and assign treatments.
Now the Kremlin will assign more loyal people to rule the region, mostly military leaders.
When we assign a primitive “not me” status to another individual or social group, it can—and does—take us down a destructive path.
Other folks can debate and assign blame for “who lost Iraq.”
Renee Richardson knows she'll likely never be able to assign blame for her son's death—she's done fighting for that.
Girls are directed through several pages of this until they are asked to assign the guy a series of pre-decided adjectives.
The designs of Russia have long been proverbial; but the exercise of the new art of printing may assign them new features.
With what honest pride did John Smith, the best farmer of them all, step to the fore and assign to each man his place!
If the lessee die, his executor or administrator can assign the remainder of his term.
As the lessee may assign or sublet unless forbidden, so may the lessor part with his interest in the leased premises.
If offered any dish of which you do not wish to partake, decline it, but do not assign any reason.
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Definition of assignment noun from the Oxford Advanced American Dictionary
Questions about grammar and vocabulary?
Find the answers with Practical English Usage online, your indispensable guide to problems in English.
- 2 [ uncountable ] the act of giving something to someone; the act of giving someone a particular task his assignment to other duties in the same company
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Assignment is a legal term whereby an individual, the “assignor,” transfers rights, property, or other benefits to another known as the “ assignee .” This concept is used in both contract and property law. The term can refer to either the act of transfer or the rights /property/benefits being transferred.
Contract Law
Under contract law, assignment of a contract is both: (1) an assignment of rights; and (2) a delegation of duties , in the absence of evidence otherwise. For example, if A contracts with B to teach B guitar for $50, A can assign this contract to C. That is, this assignment is both: (1) an assignment of A’s rights under the contract to the $50; and (2) a delegation of A’s duty to teach guitar to C. In this example, A is both the “assignor” and the “delegee” who d elegates the duties to another (C), C is known as the “ obligor ” who must perform the obligations to the assignee , and B is the “ assignee ” who is owed duties and is liable to the “ obligor ”.
(1) Assignment of Rights/Duties Under Contract Law
There are a few notable rules regarding assignments under contract law. First, if an individual has not yet secured the contract to perform duties to another, he/she cannot assign his/her future right to an assignee . That is, if A has not yet contracted with B to teach B guitar, A cannot assign his/her rights to C. Second, rights cannot be assigned when they materially change the obligor ’s duty and rights. Third, the obligor can sue the assignee directly if the assignee does not pay him/her. Following the previous example, this means that C ( obligor ) can sue B ( assignee ) if C teaches guitar to B, but B does not pay C $50 in return.
(2) Delegation of Duties
If the promised performance requires a rare genius or skill, then the delegee cannot delegate it to the obligor. It can only be delegated if the promised performance is more commonplace. Further, an obligee can sue if the assignee does not perform. However, the delegee is secondarily liable unless there has been an express release of the delegee. That is, if B does want C to teach guitar but C refuses to, then B can sue C. If C still refuses to perform, then B can compel A to fulfill the duties under secondary liability.
Lastly, a related concept is novation , which is when a new obligor substitutes and releases an old obligor. If novation occurs, then the original obligor’s duties are wiped out. However, novation requires an original obligee’s consent .
Property Law
Under property law, assignment typically arises in landlord-tenant situations. For example, A might be renting from landlord B but wants to another party (C) to take over the property. In this scenario, A might be able to choose between assigning and subleasing the property to C. If assigning , A would be giving C the entire balance of the term, with no reversion to anyone whereas if subleasing , A would be giving C for a limited period of the remaining term. Significantly, under assignment C would have privity of estate with the landlord while under a sublease, C would not.
[Last updated in May of 2020 by the Wex Definitions Team ]
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Assignment: Definition in Finance, How It Works, and Examples
Adam Hayes, Ph.D., CFA, is a financial writer with 15+ years Wall Street experience as a derivatives trader. Besides his extensive derivative trading expertise, Adam is an expert in economics and behavioral finance. Adam received his master's in economics from The New School for Social Research and his Ph.D. from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in sociology. He is a CFA charterholder as well as holding FINRA Series 7, 55 & 63 licenses. He currently researches and teaches economic sociology and the social studies of finance at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.
Yarilet Perez is an experienced multimedia journalist and fact-checker with a Master of Science in Journalism. She has worked in multiple cities covering breaking news, politics, education, and more. Her expertise is in personal finance and investing, and real estate.
What Is an Assignment?
Assignment most often refers to one of two definitions in the financial world:
- The transfer of an individual's rights or property to another person or business. This concept exists in a variety of business transactions and is often spelled out contractually.
- In trading, assignment occurs when an option contract is exercised. The owner of the contract exercises the contract and assigns the option writer to an obligation to complete the requirements of the contract.
Key Takeaways
- Assignment is a transfer of rights or property from one party to another.
- Options assignments occur when option buyers exercise their rights to a position in a security.
- Other examples of assignments can be found in wages, mortgages, and leases.
Uses For Assignments
Assignment refers to the transfer of some or all property rights and obligations associated with an asset, property, contract, or other asset of value. to another entity through a written agreement.
Assignment rights happen every day in many different situations. A payee, like a utility or a merchant, assigns the right to collect payment from a written check to a bank. A merchant can assign the funds from a line of credit to a manufacturing third party that makes a product that the merchant will eventually sell. A trademark owner can transfer, sell, or give another person interest in the trademark or logo. A homeowner who sells their house assigns the deed to the new buyer.
To be effective, an assignment must involve parties with legal capacity, consideration, consent, and legality of the object.
A wage assignment is a forced payment of an obligation by automatic withholding from an employee’s pay. Courts issue wage assignments for people late with child or spousal support, taxes, loans, or other obligations. Money is automatically subtracted from a worker's paycheck without consent if they have a history of nonpayment. For example, a person delinquent on $100 monthly loan payments has a wage assignment deducting the money from their paycheck and sent to the lender. Wage assignments are helpful in paying back long-term debts.
Another instance can be found in a mortgage assignment. This is where a mortgage deed gives a lender interest in a mortgaged property in return for payments received. Lenders often sell mortgages to third parties, such as other lenders. A mortgage assignment document clarifies the assignment of contract and instructs the borrower in making future mortgage payments, and potentially modifies the mortgage terms.
A final example involves a lease assignment. This benefits a relocating tenant wanting to end a lease early or a landlord looking for rent payments to pay creditors. Once the new tenant signs the lease, taking over responsibility for rent payments and other obligations, the previous tenant is released from those responsibilities. In a separate lease assignment, a landlord agrees to pay a creditor through an assignment of rent due under rental property leases. The agreement is used to pay a mortgage lender if the landlord defaults on the loan or files for bankruptcy . Any rental income would then be paid directly to the lender.
Options Assignment
Options can be assigned when a buyer decides to exercise their right to buy (or sell) stock at a particular strike price . The corresponding seller of the option is not determined when a buyer opens an option trade, but only at the time that an option holder decides to exercise their right to buy stock. So an option seller with open positions is matched with the exercising buyer via automated lottery. The randomly selected seller is then assigned to fulfill the buyer's rights. This is known as an option assignment.
Once assigned, the writer (seller) of the option will have the obligation to sell (if a call option ) or buy (if a put option ) the designated number of shares of stock at the agreed-upon price (the strike price). For instance, if the writer sold calls they would be obligated to sell the stock, and the process is often referred to as having the stock called away . For puts, the buyer of the option sells stock (puts stock shares) to the writer in the form of a short-sold position.
Suppose a trader owns 100 call options on company ABC's stock with a strike price of $10 per share. The stock is now trading at $30 and ABC is due to pay a dividend shortly. As a result, the trader exercises the options early and receives 10,000 shares of ABC paid at $10. At the same time, the other side of the long call (the short call) is assigned the contract and must deliver the shares to the long.
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3.4 Expression Wrapper: #%expression 🔗 ℹ
syntax ( #%expression expr )
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Meaning of on assignment in English
On assignment, on assignment | intermediate english, translations of on assignment.
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The meaning of ASSIGNMENT is the act of assigning something. How to use assignment in a sentence. Synonym Discussion of Assignment.
ASSIGNMENT definition: 1. a piece of work given to someone, typically as part of their studies or job: 2. a job that…. Learn more.
assignment: 1 n an undertaking that you have been assigned to do (as by an instructor) Types: show 6 types... hide 6 types... school assignment , schoolwork a school task performed by a student to satisfy the teacher writing assignment , written assignment an assignment to write something classroom project a school task requiring considerable ...
7 meanings: 1. something that has been assigned, such as a mission or task 2. a position or post to which a person is assigned.... Click for more definitions.
Assignment definition: something assigned, as a particular task or duty. See examples of ASSIGNMENT used in a sentence.
Definition of assignment noun in Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more. ... Find out which words work together and produce more natural-sounding English with the Oxford Collocations Dictionary app. Try it for free as part of the Oxford Advanced Learner ...
ASSIGNMENT definition: a piece of work or job that you are given to do: . Learn more.
assignment meaning, definition, what is assignment: a piece of work that is given to someone...: Learn more.
Define assignment. assignment synonyms, assignment pronunciation, assignment translation, English dictionary definition of assignment. n. 1. The act of assigning: His assignment of the tasks seemed unfair. 2. Something, such as a task, that is assigned: What's the math assignment for...
Assignment definition: The act of assigning. True to my assignment, I recorded movements and time until Quinn's voice from below broke the silence.
assignment - WordReference English dictionary, questions, discussion and forums. All Free.
ASSIGNMENT meaning: 1. a piece of work given to someone, typically as part of their studies or job: 2. a job that…. Learn more.
1. : a job or duty that is given to someone : a task someone is required to do. [count] My assignment was to clean the equipment. = They gave me the assignment of cleaning the equipment. The students were given a homework assignment. The reporter's assignment is to interview the candidate. The reporter is here on an assignment.
assign: [verb] to transfer (property) to another especially in trust or for the benefit of creditors.
assignment in British English. (əˈsaɪnmənt ) noun. 1. something that has been assigned, such as a mission or task. 2. a position or post to which a person is assigned. 3. the act of assigning or state of being assigned.
Definition of assign verb in Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more. ... Try it for free as part of the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary app ... assignment noun; pity. noun . From the Word list. Oxford 5000. B2.
Assign definition: to give or allocate; allot. See examples of ASSIGN used in a sentence.
Definition of assignment noun in Oxford Advanced American Dictionary. Meaning, pronunciation, picture, example sentences, grammar, usage notes, synonyms and more. ... Find out which words work together and produce more natural-sounding English with the Oxford Collocations Dictionary app. Try it for free as part of the Oxford Advanced Learner ...
ASSIGN meaning: 1. to give a particular job or piece of work to someone: 2. If you assign a time for a job or…. Learn more.
Assignment is a legal term whereby an individual, the "assignor," transfers rights, property, or other benefits to another known as the " assignee .". This concept is used in both contract and property law. The term can refer to either the act of transfer or the rights /property/benefits being transferred.
Assignment: An assignment is the transfer of an individual's rights or property to another person or business. For example, when an option contract is assigned, an option writer has an obligation ...
ASSIGN definition: 1. to give a particular job or piece of work to someone: 2. If you assign a time for a job or…. Learn more.
The #%expression form is helpful in recursive definition contexts where expanding a subsequent definition can provide compile-time information for the current expression. For example, consider a define-sym-case macro that simply records some symbols at compile-time in a given identifier. (define-syntax (define-sym-case stx)
ON ASSIGNMENT meaning: 1. Someone who is on assignment is doing a particular job or piece of work, usually in a particular…. Learn more.