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Synonyms

assist

American  
[uh-sist] / əˈsɪst /

verb (used with object)

  1. to give support or aid to; help.

    Please assist him in moving the furniture.
    Synonyms:
    promote, back, befriend, abet, sustain
    Antonyms:
    frustrate, hinder

  2. to be associated with as an assistant or helper.

verb (used without object)

  1. to give aid or help.

  2. to be present, as at a meeting or ceremony.

noun

  1. Sports.

    1. Baseball. a play that helps to put out a batter or base runner.

    2. Basketball, Ice Hockey. a play that helps a teammate in gaining a goal.

    3. the official credit scored for such plays.

  2. a helpful act.

    She finished her homework without an assist from her father.

  3. Machinery. an electrical, hydraulic, or mechanical means of increasing power, efficiency, or ease of use.

    a luxury automobile equipped with assists for brakes, steering, windows, and seat adjustment.
assist British  
/ əˈsɪst /

verb

  1. to give help or support to (a person, cause, etc); aid

  2. to work or act as an assistant or subordinate to (another)

  3. ice hockey to help (a team-mate) to score, as by passing the puck

  4. archaic to be present; attend

"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

noun

  1. the act of helping; aid; assistance

  2. baseball the act of a player who throws or deflects a batted ball in such a way that a team is enabled to put out an opponent

  3. sport

    1. a pass or other action by a player which enables another player to score a goal

    2. a credit given for such an action

"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

Related Words

See help.

Other Word Forms

  • assister noun
  • assistive adjective
  • nonassister noun
  • overassist verb
  • reassist verb (used with object)
  • unassisted adjective
  • unassisting adjective
  • well-assisted adjective

Etymology

Origin of assist

First recorded in 1505–15; from Latin assistere “to stand by, help,” from as- as- ( def. ) + sistere “to cause to stand, stop,” derivative of stāre “to stand” ( stand ( def. ) )

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.