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Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary as·sert \\ə-ˈsərt, a-\\ transitive verb ETYMOLOGY Latin assertus, past participle of asserere, from ad- + serere to join — more at series
DATE circa 1604
1. to state or declare positively and often forcefully or aggressively2. a. to demonstrate the existence of assert his manhood — James Joyce b. posit , postulate • • • - assert oneself Synonyms. assert , declare , affirm , protest , avow mean to state positively usually in anticipation of denial or objection. assert implies stating confidently without need for proof or regard for evidence asserted that modern music is just noise declare stresses open or public statement declared her support for the candidate affirm implies conviction based on evidence, experience, or faith affirmed the existence of an afterlife protest emphasizes affirming in the face of denial or doubt protested that he really had been misquoted avow stresses frank declaration and acknowledgment of personal responsibility for what is declared avowed that all investors would be repaid in fullSynonym: see in addition maintain .
assert
c.1600, "to declare," from L. assertus, pp. of asserere "to claim, maintain, affirm" (see assertion). To assert oneself "stand up for one's rights" is recorded from 1879.
Oxford Collocations Dictionary for Students of English Oxford Collocations dictionary for students of Englishassert
verb 1 say sth clearly and firmly ADV. boldly, confidently, emphatically, forcefully, strongly The report asserts confidently that the industry will grow. | directly, explicitly | simply He had no real evidence?he simply asserted that what he said was true. | repeatedly | rightly 2 make other people recognize your rights/authority ADV. successfully They successfully asserted their right to protect their homes. VERB + ASSERT need to | be determined to, wish to She wished to assert her independence from her parents. | seek to, try to | be able to, manage to He managed to assert his power over the media. | be unable to, fail to Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary-牛津双解-OALD7 assert
as·sert / E5sE:t; NAmE E5sE:rt / verb1. to state clearly and firmly that sth is true
明确肯定；断言:
▪ [V that]
She continued to assert that she was innocent.
她仍然坚称自己无辜。
▪ [VN]
She continued to assert her innocence.
她仍然坚称自己无辜。
▪ [V speech]
'That is wrong,' he asserted.
"那是错的。"他断言道。
▪ [VN that]
It is commonly asserted that older people prefer to receive care from family members.
人们普遍确认,老年人更愿意由家人照顾。
2. [VN] ~ yourself to behave in a confident and determined way so that other people pay attention to your opinions
坚持自己的主张；表现坚定
3. [VN] to make other people recognize your right or authority to do sth, by behaving firmly and confidently
维护自己的权利(或权威):
to assert your independence / rights
维护你的独立/权利
I was determined to assert my authority from the beginning.
我决心一开始就维护我的权威。
4. [VN] ~ itself to start to have an effect
生效；起作用:
Good sense asserted itself.
明智服人。
Webster's Third New International Dictionary, Unabridged as·sert\əˈsərt, -ə̄t, -əit also aˈ-; usu -d.+V\ transitive verb( -ed/-ing/-s) Etymology: Latin assertus, adsertus, past participle of asserere, adserere to assert, lay claim to, liberate, from ad- + serere to join — more at series 1. : to state or affirm positively, assuredly, plainly, or strongly < I am far from asserting it was the actual way — Havelock Ellis >2. a. : to demonstrate the existence of (an attribute) : signify < assert his manhood — James Joyce > b. : to demand and compel recognition of < he was never able to assert himself sufficiently > c. : to postulate or to affirm the existence of < by again asserting God as an active force in history — Time >3. archaic a. : to lay claim to as a possession or attribute b. : to take a stand with or for : champion , defend < I will assert it from the scandal — Jeremy Taylor >Synonyms: declare , profess , affirm , aver , protest , avouch , avow , predicate , warrant : assert puts stress on the fact of positive statement; it may imply noteworthy assuredness or force on the speaker's part or lack of proof for the statement < we dissect and study and describe a language in modern times on the basis of a structural analysis, and then assert what its usage is — Joshua Whatmough > < as early as 1808 Jefferson's cabinet asserted that the United States had a common interest with the revolutionists in excluding European influence — A.P.Whitaker > < hill-dwellers, whose language, it is asserted, resembles Elizabethan English — American Guide Series: Arkansas > declare is sometimes used in reference to explicit, open, public statement, perhaps formal < almost without exception, the New Jersey press daily declares its independence from its metropolitan rivals — American Guide Series: New Jersey > < the law in many states declared mixed marriages illegal — Oscar Handlin > profess may refer to open declaration, perhaps repeated, especially of one's own inclinations or capacities, sometimes hypocritical < if judicial critics do not learn modesty from the past they profess to esteem, it is not from lack of material — John Dewey > < an orthodox Communist leader who professed to speak for the submerged masses — Allan Murray > < enjoyment in occasionally professing opinions which in fact are not your own — Jane Austen > affirm may suggest delivery of a statement with an earnest appearance of truth and conviction, sometimes a factitious appearance < affirmed that he took no part in this black deed — W.H.Hudson †1922 > < it will be affirmed that much learning deadens or perverts poetic sensibility — T.S.Eliot > < politicians more often affirm their desire for retirement than show that they really mean it — Times Literary Supplement > aver may suggest confidence and genuine belief in the truth of a statement that might be questioned < Sedgwick averred that he had wasted two years' work through adhering to Werner's notions — S.F.Mason > < averring that leniency would be a mistake in the case of the confirmed young criminal — Current Biography > protest may indicate forceful declaration in the face of doubt or contradiction < Streicher protesting he'd never hurt a soul — Current Biography > < we tend to suspect that a man who protests that his aim is the production of beauty and goodness is something of a charlatan — T.D.Weldon > avouch , less used than others in this group, may apply to statements substantiated by certain personal knowledge or by irrefutable authority < as anyone who is familiar with Communist tactics can avouch — W.R.Kintner > avow stresses open, frank declaration, with full personal acknowledgment and responsibility < communists, fascists, and other avowed enemies of parliamentarism — F.Ogg & H.Zink > < “as to the great service,” said Carton, “I am bound to avow to you, when you speak of it in that way, that it was mere professional claptrap” — Charles Dickens > predicate in this sense may indicate an affirming of something as a quality, attribute, or concomitant < to predicate of diabolic agencies, which are gifted with angelic intellects, the highly ridiculous activities which are so characteristic of poltergeist visitations — J.McCarthy > < logic works by predicating of the single instance what is true of all its kind — William James > warrant may apply to assured statement made without brooking contradiction, with or as if with one's personal guarantee < I'll warrant he's as good a gentleman as any — John Buchan >Synonym: see in addition maintain .
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