Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

assistant

/əˈsɪstənt/

Word Rarity Uncommon

Frequency: 4.72 in modern English

Syllables: as-sis-tant
IPA: /əˈsɪstənt/

9

Scrabble Score

9

Letters

3

Syllables

5

Unique Chars

Meaning

adj

Having a subordinate or auxiliary position.

adj

Helping; lending aid or support; auxiliary.

noun

Someone who is present; a bystander, a witness.

Obsolete

noun

A person who assists or helps someone else.

noun

Sales assistant.

British usage

noun

A software tool that provides assistance in some task, a wizard program.

Example Sentences

"an assistant surgeon"
"Genius and learning […] are mutually and greatly assistant to each other."
"The person principally assistant on this occasion, indeed the only one who did any service, or seemed likely to do any, was the landlady […]"
"a woman of great authority, having first yeelded an accompt unto her Citizens, and shewed good reasons why she was resolved to end her life, earnestly entreated Pompey to be an assistant at her death, that so it might be esteemed more honourable[…]."

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *h₂éd Proto-Italic *ad Proto-Italic *ad- Latin ad- Proto-Indo-European *steh₂- Proto-Indo-European *stísteh₂ti Proto-Italic *sistō Latin sistō Latin assistōbor. Middle French assister Proto-Indo-European *-onts Latin -ns Latin -āns Old French -ant Middle French -ant Middle French assistantbor. Middle English assistent English assistant From Middle English assistent, from Middle French assistant, from assister. By surface analysis, assist + -ant.

Origin

Source language: Middle English

Word Breakdown

Root: assistent, assistant

Usage

Obsolete
British usage

Inflected Forms

assistaunt (alternative, obsolete) assistants (plural)

Derived Forms

assistantly assistantship underassistant

Phrases

assistant chief constable assistant field cornet assistant-manage assistant manager assistant professor assistant referee assistant stage manager butler's assistant

Frequently Paired Words

assist assistance

Synonyms

wizard adjunct helper help supporter

Rhymes With

consistent self-consistent distant resistant persistent inconsistent existent non-existent nonexistent insistent

Questions

How do you pronounce assistant?: The recorded pronunciation is /əˈsɪstənt/.
What does assistant mean?: Having a subordinate or auxiliary position.
Where does assistant come from?: It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce assistant

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “assistant”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/əˈsɪstənt/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
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