assist


Also found in: Thesaurus, Medical, Acronyms, Idioms, Encyclopedia, Wikipedia.

as·sist

 (ə-sĭst′)
v. as·sist·ed, as·sist·ing, as·sists
v.tr.
To give help or support to, especially as a subordinate or supplement; aid: The clerk assisted the judge by looking up related precedents. Her breathing was assisted by a respirator.
v.intr.
1. To give aid or support: Who assisted during the operation?
2. To be present, as at a conference: "Mr. Dick had regularly assisted at our councils, with a meditative and sage demeanor. He never made a suggestion but once" (Charles Dickens).
n.
1. The act of giving aid; help: cleaned the garage with the assist of a friend.
2. Sports
a. A fielding and throwing of a baseball in such a way that enables a teammate to put out a runner.
b. A pass, as in basketball or ice hockey, that enables the receiver to score.
3. A mechanical device providing aid.

[Middle English assisten, from Old French assister, from Latin assistere : ad-, ad- + sistere, to stand; see stā- in Indo-European roots.]

as·sist′er n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

assist

(əˈsɪst)
vb
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. (Hockey (Field & Ice)) ice hockey to help (a team-mate) to score, as by passing the puck
4. archaic (foll by: at) to be present; attend
n
5. US and Canadian the act of helping; aid; assistance
6. (Baseball) 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
7. (General Sporting Terms) sport
a. a pass or other action by a player which enables another player to score a goal
b. a credit given for such an action
[C15: from French assister to be present, from Latin assistere to stand by, from sistere to cause to stand, from stāre to stand]
asˈsister n
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

as•sist

(əˈsɪst)

v.t.
1. to give support or aid to; help.
2. to be associated with as an assistant or helper.
v.i.
3. to give aid or help.
4. to be present, as at a meeting or ceremony.
n.
5. (in sports)
a. a play or pass helping a teammate to score or make a putout.
b. the official credit scored for such a play or pass.
6. a helpful act.
7. an electrical, hydraulic, or mechanical means of increasing power, efficiency, or ease of use.
[1505–15; < Latin assistere to stand by =as- as- + sistere to cause to stand]
syn: See help.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.

assist

be present
1. 'assist'

If you assist someone, you help them. Assist is a formal word.

We may be able to assist with the tuition fees.
They are raising money to assist hurricane victims.
2. 'be present'

If you want to say that someone is there when something happens, you say that someone is present.

He had been present at the dance.
There is no need for me to be present.
Collins COBUILD English Usage © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 2004, 2011, 2012

assist


Past participle: assisted
Gerund: assisting

Imperative
assist
assist
Present
I assist
you assist
he/she/it assists
we assist
you assist
they assist
Preterite
I assisted
you assisted
he/she/it assisted
we assisted
you assisted
they assisted
Present Continuous
I am assisting
you are assisting
he/she/it is assisting
we are assisting
you are assisting
they are assisting
Present Perfect
I have assisted
you have assisted
he/she/it has assisted
we have assisted
you have assisted
they have assisted
Past Continuous
I was assisting
you were assisting
he/she/it was assisting
we were assisting
you were assisting
they were assisting
Past Perfect
I had assisted
you had assisted
he/she/it had assisted
we had assisted
you had assisted
they had assisted
Future
I will assist
you will assist
he/she/it will assist
we will assist
you will assist
they will assist
Future Perfect
I will have assisted
you will have assisted
he/she/it will have assisted
we will have assisted
you will have assisted
they will have assisted
Future Continuous
I will be assisting
you will be assisting
he/she/it will be assisting
we will be assisting
you will be assisting
they will be assisting
Present Perfect Continuous
I have been assisting
you have been assisting
he/she/it has been assisting
we have been assisting
you have been assisting
they have been assisting
Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been assisting
you will have been assisting
he/she/it will have been assisting
we will have been assisting
you will have been assisting
they will have been assisting
Past Perfect Continuous
I had been assisting
you had been assisting
he/she/it had been assisting
we had been assisting
you had been assisting
they had been assisting
Conditional
I would assist
you would assist
he/she/it would assist
we would assist
you would assist
they would assist
Past Conditional
I would have assisted
you would have assisted
he/she/it would have assisted
we would have assisted
you would have assisted
they would have assisted
Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

assist

1. A pass that leads directly to a basket being scored.
2. The passing of the puck by another player to the goalscorer.
Dictionary of Unfamiliar Words by Diagram Group Copyright © 2008 by Diagram Visual Information Limited
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Noun1.assist - the activity of contributing to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purposeassist - the activity of contributing to the fulfillment of a need or furtherance of an effort or purpose; "he gave me an assist with the housework"; "could not walk without assistance"; "rescue party went to their aid"; "offered his help in unloading"
activity - any specific behavior; "they avoided all recreational activity"
self-help - the act of helping or improving yourself without relying on anyone else
facilitation - act of assisting or making easier the progress or improvement of something
helping hand, hand - physical assistance; "give me a hand with the chores"
recourse, refuge, resort - act of turning to for assistance; "have recourse to the courts"; "an appeal to his uncle was his last resort"
thanks - with the help of or owing to; "thanks to hard work it was a great success"
ministration, succor, succour, relief - assistance in time of difficulty; "the contributions provided some relief for the victims"
lift - the act of giving temporary assistance
service - an act of help or assistance; "he did them a service"
accommodation - the act of providing something (lodging or seat or food) to meet a need
boost, encouragement - the act of giving hope or support to someone
comfort - assistance, such as that provided to an enemy or to a known criminal; "it gave comfort to the enemy"
support - aiding the cause or policy or interests of; "the president no longer has the support of his own party"; "they developed a scheme of mutual support"
2.assist - (sports) the act of enabling another player to make a good playassist - (sports) the act of enabling another player to make a good play
hockey game, ice hockey, hockey - a game played on an ice rink by two opposing teams of six skaters each who try to knock a flat round puck into the opponents' goal with angled sticks
baseball, baseball game - a ball game played with a bat and ball between two teams of nine players; teams take turns at bat trying to score runs; "he played baseball in high school"; "there was a baseball game on every empty lot"; "there was a desire for National League ball in the area"; "play ball!"
basketball, basketball game, hoops - a game played on a court by two opposing teams of 5 players; points are scored by throwing the ball through an elevated horizontal hoop
maneuver, manoeuvre, play - a deliberate coordinated movement requiring dexterity and skill; "he made a great maneuver"; "the runner was out on a play by the shortstop"
Verb1.assist - give help or assistanceassist - give help or assistance; be of service; "Everyone helped out during the earthquake"; "Can you help me carry this table?"; "She never helps around the house"
facilitate, alleviate, ease - make easier; "you could facilitate the process by sharing your knowledge"
wait on, attend to, assist, attend, serve - work for or be a servant to; "May I serve you?"; "She attends the old lady in the wheelchair"; "Can you wait on our table, please?"; "Is a salesperson assisting you?"; "The minister served the King for many years"
benefact - help as a benefactor; "The father benefacted his daughter in more ways than she was aware of"
help out - be of help, as in a particular situation of need; "Can you help out tonight with the dinner guests?"
subserve - be helpful or useful
succor, succour - help in a difficult situation
expedite, hasten - speed up the progress of; facilitate; "This should expedite the process"
avail - be of use to, be useful to; "It will avail them to dispose of their booty"
give care, care - provide care for; "The nurse was caring for the wounded"
bootstrap - help oneself, often through improvised means
back up, support - give moral or psychological support, aid, or courage to; "She supported him during the illness"; "Her children always backed her up"
2.assist - act as an assistant in a subordinate or supportive functionassist - act as an assistant in a subordinate or supportive function
protect - use tariffs to favor domestic industry
work - exert oneself by doing mental or physical work for a purpose or out of necessity; "I will work hard to improve my grades"; "she worked hard for better living conditions for the poor"
abet - assist or encourage, usually in some wrongdoing
3.assist - work for or be a servant toassist - work for or be a servant to; "May I serve you?"; "She attends the old lady in the wheelchair"; "Can you wait on our table, please?"; "Is a salesperson assisting you?"; "The minister served the King for many years"
valet - serve as a personal attendant to
aid, assist, help - give help or assistance; be of service; "Everyone helped out during the earthquake"; "Can you help me carry this table?"; "She never helps around the house"
serve - devote (part of) one's life or efforts to, as of countries, institutions, or ideas; "She served the art of music"; "He served the church"; "serve the country"
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

assist

verb
1. help, back, support, further, benefit, aid, encourage, work with, work for, relieve, collaborate with, cooperate with, abet, expedite, succour, lend a hand to, lend a helping hand to, give a leg up to (informal) They decided to assist me with my chores.
2. facilitate, help, further, serve, aid, forward, promote, promote, boost, ease, sustain, reinforce, speed up, pave the way for, make easy, expedite, oil the wheels, smooth the path of, assist the progress of a chemical that assists in the manufacture of proteins
facilitate resist, frustrate, handicap, hold up, hamper, hold back, thwart, hinder, obstruct, impede, work against
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

assist

verb
To give support or assistance:
noun
The act or an instance of helping:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Translations
يُساعِد
asistovatpomáhat
assisterehjælpe
auttaaavustaasyöttää
aîstoîa
asistentasasistuotipadėjėjaspardavėjas
asistēt
asistovať
asistiratipomagati

assist

[əˈsɪst]
A. VT (= help) [+ person] → ayudar; [+ development, growth etc] → fomentar, estimular
to assist sb to do sthayudar a algn a hacer algo
we assisted him to his carle ayudamos a llegar a su coche
B. VI (= help) → ayudar
to assist in sthayudar en algo
to assist in doing sthayudar a hacer algo
C. N (Sport) → asistencia f
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

assist

[əˈsɪst] vt [+ person] → aider; [+ injured person, accident victim] → secourir
to assist sb with sth → aider qn dans qch
to assist sb in doing sth → aider qn à faire qch
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

assist

vthelfen (+dat); (= act as an assistant to)assistieren (+dat); growth, progress, developmentfördern, begünstigen; to assist somebody with somethingjdm bei etw helfen or behilflich sein; to assist somebody in doing or to do somethingjdm helfen, etw zu tun; … who was assisting the surgeon…, der dem Chirurgen assistierte; in a wind assisted time of 10.01 secondsmit Rückenwind in einer Zeit von 10,01 Sekunden; a man is assisting the police (with their inquiries) (euph)ein Mann wird von der Polizei vernommen
vi
(= help)helfen; to assist with somethingbei etw helfen; to assist in doing somethinghelfen, etw zu tun
(= be present) (doctor)assistieren (at bei); (in church) → ministrieren
n (Sport) → Vorlage f
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

assist

[əˈsɪst]
1. vt to assist sb (to do or in doing sth)aiutare qn (a fare qc), assistere qn (a or nel fare qc)
we assisted him to his car → lo abbiamo aiutato a raggiungere la sua macchina
2. vi (help) to assist in sthaiutare in qc, essere di aiuto in qc
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

assist

(əˈsist) verb
to help. The junior doctor assisted the surgeon at the operation.
asˈsistance noun
help. Do you need assistance?
asˈsistant noun
1. a person who assists; a helper. a laboratory assistant; (also adjective) an assistant headmaster.
2. a person who serves in a shop.
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.

assist

vt. ayudar, asistir, socorrer.
English-Spanish Medical Dictionary © Farlex 2012

assist

vt asistir; computer-assisted, vacuum-assisted, etc. asistido por computadora, asistido por vacío, etc.
English-Spanish/Spanish-English Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2006 by The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.
References in classic literature ?
I answer that the principalities of which one has record are found to be governed in two different ways; either by a prince, with a body of servants, who assist him to govern the kingdom as ministers by his favour and permission; or by a prince and barons, who hold that dignity by antiquity of blood and not by the grace of the prince.
"I have seen the First and Foremost Phanfasm of the Mountain of Phantastico, and he will bring his people to assist us."
Mackie, the lady principal, asking me to return to Hampton two weeks before the opening of the school, in order that I might assist her in cleaning the buildings and getting things in order for the new school year.
"And did this Mr Dowling," says Allworthy, with great astonishment in his countenance, "tell you that I would assist in the prosecution?"--"No, sir," answered she, "I will not charge him wrongfully.
Well, then, according to the proverb, `Let brother help brother'-- if he fails in any part do you assist him; although I must confess that Glaucon has already said quite enough to lay me in the dust, and take from me the power of helping justice.
"And is it true that this Mihailov is in such poverty?" asked Vronsky, thinking that, as a Russian Maecenas, it was his duty to assist the artist regardless of whether the picture were good or bad.
He continued with her the whole time of her writing, to assist her with his penknife or his orthography, as either were wanted; and added to these attentions, which she felt very much, a kindness to her brother which delighted her beyond all the rest.
'For,' added he, 'I will answer for him, and for every step he takes; if he wrongs you, madam, of one farthing, it shall lie at my door, I will make it good; and he delights to assist people in such cases--he does it as an act of charity.'
Coles, who would force themselves anywhere; neither could she feel any right of preference herself she submitted, therefore, and only questioned Miss Bates farther as to her niece's appetite and diet, which she longed to be able to assist. On that subject poor Miss Bates was very unhappy, and very communicative; Jane would hardly eat any thing: Mr.
I was necessarily one among the witnesses summoned to assist the objects of the investigation.
"But you will contribute something to the campaign fund to assist in your election, will you not?" asked the Party Manager, winking.
We have been examined together, as well as separately, to assist the police."