assign

verb

ə-ˈsīn How to pronounce assign (audio)
Definition of assignnext
1
as in to task
to give a task, duty, or responsibility to assigned the class with the task of finding something in the state constitution they felt needed changing

Synonyms & Similar Words

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2
as in to allot
to give as a share or portion each new employee is assigned a cubicle and a computer

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in to cede
to give over the legal possession or ownership of assigned all rights to and royalties from the song to the Boy Scouts

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms
4
as in to appoint
to pick (someone) by one's authority for a specific position or duty the mayor assigned the panel with the task of luring a major sports franchise to the city

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Synonym Chooser

How is the word assign different from other verbs like it?

Some common synonyms of assign are ascribe, attribute, credit, and impute. While all these words mean "to lay something to the account of a person or thing," assign implies ascribing with certainty or after deliberation.

assigned the bones to the Cretaceous period

In what contexts can ascribe take the place of assign?

The synonyms ascribe and assign are sometimes interchangeable, but ascribe suggests an inferring or conjecturing of cause, quality, authorship.

forged paintings formerly ascribed to masters

How is attribute related to other words for assign?

Attribute suggests less tentativeness than ascribe, less definiteness than assign.

attributed to Rembrandt but possibly done by an associate

Where would credit be a reasonable alternative to assign?

In some situations, the words credit and assign are roughly equivalent. However, credit implies ascribing a thing or especially an action to a person or other thing as its agent, source, or explanation.

credited his teammates for his success

When is it sensible to use impute instead of assign?

While in some cases nearly identical to assign, impute suggests ascribing something that brings discredit by way of accusation or blame.

tried to impute sinister motives to my actions

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of assign If participants could not be clearly assigned to one type of diet, they were excluded. — Anna Bader, Glamour, 20 Mar. 2025 He was drafted and assigned to a segregated Army cavalry unit at Fort Riley, Kansas, in 1942. — Regina Cho, VIBE.com, 19 Mar. 2025 For the first phase of the study, participants were randomly assigned to take either gantenerumab, another amyloid-lowering drug called solanezumab or a placebo. — Brenda Goodman, CNN, 19 Mar. 2025 The crew assigned to Ax-4 includes Commander Peggy Whitson, Mission Pilot Shubhanshu Shukla of India, Mission Specialist Sławosz Uznański of ESA/Poland, and Mission Specialist Tibor Kapu of Hungary. — Richard Tribou, Orlando Sentinel, 18 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for assign
Recent Examples of Synonyms for assign
  1. task
  2. allot
  3. cede
  4. appoint
  5. entrust
  6. allocate
  7. transfer
  8. nominate
Verb
  • At that point, no one will be counting pennies—except, of course, for the Bills front office staff tasked with maintaining related cap allocations for years afterward.
    — Jacob Feldman, Sportico.com, 15 Mar. 2025
  • The Trump administration has been focused on an overhaul of the federal government, with tech billionaire Elon Musk tasked with finding ways to cut spending and workers.
    — Alex Gangitano, The Hill, 15 Mar. 2025
Definition of task
Verb
  • Government money has already been allotted to help the development of the Central Docks area.
    — Patrick Boyland, The Athletic, 21 Mar. 2025
  • The first round of cancellations, which began on the evening of February 28, focused mainly on grants that included a DEI component or involved transgender participants; officials at the agency were also told to cut off funding to projects that allot money to China.
    — Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 14 Mar. 2025
Definition of allot
Verb
  • Trump issued demands after threatening to withhold $400 million. 0:28 Columbia University appears to have ceded to the Trump administration's demands after a threat to withhold $400 million in federal funds.
    — Aaron Katersky, ABC News, 22 Mar. 2025
  • Boeing has ceded ground to rival Airbus AIR.PA in the delivery race and entered the crosshairs of regulators and customers following missteps.
    — Mike Stone, USA TODAY, 21 Mar. 2025
Definition of cede
Verb
  • Any appeals of decisions in New Jersey would be heard by the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, which is split 6-6 between active judges appointed by Democratic and Republican presidents.
    — Luc Cohen, USA TODAY, 19 Mar. 2025
  • Simpson emerged as a spear-carrier for Social Security benefit cuts in 2010, when he was appointed the GOP co-chair of the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform, established by Barack Obama as a sop to conservative deficit hawks.
    — Michael Hiltzik, Los Angeles Times, 19 Mar. 2025
Definition of appoint
Verb
  • Trump also recently entrusted Vance to travel to the Munich Security Conference in Germany as the face of his administration, where Vance scolded European allies for not doing more to protect free speech.
    — Anna Giaritelli, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 5 Mar. 2025
  • If states, pension plans and even some endowments actively invest into bitcoin and other cryptoassets those investments are – be default – being made with the funds of others that have been entrusted to fund managers.
    — Sean Stein Smith, Forbes, 22 Feb. 2025
Definition of entrust
Verb
  • Increased Profitability: With lower initial costs, entrepreneurs can allocate more resources toward customer acquisition and marketing.
    — Jaime Catmull, Forbes, 23 Mar. 2025
  • Many, worried about a worst case scenario being realized, have allocated more toward Treasurys and gold, as well as other liquid, defensive areas.
    — Sarah Min, CNBC, 21 Mar. 2025
Definition of allocate
Verb
  • The deportees were then transferred to the Center for Terrorism Confinement, known as Cecot, the largest prison in the Americas.
    — Merlin Delcid, CNN, 23 Mar. 2025
  • Schreiner also spoke out against states and colleges that were not offering the trans athlete a full scholarship when Schreiner wanted to transfer in December.
    — Jackson Thompson, Fox News, 23 Mar. 2025
Definition of transfer
Verb
  • The top executives of the music awards in each country, or those nominated by the top executives, will participate in MAJ as overseas voting members.
    — Billboard Japan, Billboard, 14 Mar. 2025
  • She was nominated to lead the NEH by then-president Joe Biden in October 2021 and confirmed to a typical four-year term in the role by the Senate the following February.
    — News Desk, Artforum, 14 Mar. 2025
Definition of nominate

Browse Nearby Words

assiduousness
assign
assignation
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Cite this Entry

“Assign.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/assign. Accessed 29 Mar. 2025.

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