to estimate officially the value of (property, income, etc.) as a basis for taxation.
2.
to fix or determine the amount of (damages, a tax, a fine, etc.): The hurricane damage was assessed at six million dollars.
3.
to impose a tax or other charge on.
4.
to estimate or judge the value, character, etc., of; evaluate: to assess one's efforts.
[Origin: 1400–50; late ME assessen < ML assessāre to assess a tax, deriv. of L asséssus seated beside (a judge) (ptp. of assidére), equiv. to as-as-+ sed- (s. of sedére to sit) + -tus ptp. suffix]
To set or determine the amount of (a payment, such as a tax or fine).
To charge (a person or property) with a special payment, such as a tax or fine.
Sports To charge a player, coach, or team with (a foul or penalty).
To determine the value, significance, or extent of; appraise. See Synonyms at estimate.
[Middle English assessen, from Old French assesser, from Latin assidēre, assess-, to sit by as an assistant judge : ad-, ad- + sedēre, to sit; see sed- in Indo-European roots.]
1423, "to fix the amount (of a tax, fine, etc.)," from Anglo-Fr. assesser, from M.L. assessare "fix a tax upon," originally frequentative of L. assidere "to sit beside" (and thus to assist in the office of a judge), from ad- "to" + sedere "to sit." One of the judge's assistant's jobs was to fix the amount of a fine or tax. Meaning "to estimate the value of property for the purpose of taxing it" is from 1809; transf. sense of "to judge the value of a person, idea, etc." is from 1934.
evaluate or estimate the nature, quality, ability, extent, or significance of; "I will have the family jewels appraised by a professional"; "access all the factors when taking a risk" [syn: measure]
2.
charge (a person or a property) with a payment, such as a tax or a fine
3.
set or determine the amount of (a payment such as a fine) [syn: tax]
4.
estimate the value of (property) for taxation; "Our house hasn't been assessed in years"
Main Entry: as·sess Pronunciation: &-'ses Function: transitive verb 1: to determine the rate or amount of (as a tax) 2 a:
to impose (as a tax) according to an established rate b: to subject to a tax, charge, or levy <each property owner was assessed an additional five dollars> 3: to make an official valuation of (property) for the purposes of taxation —as·sess·able/&-'se-s&-b&l/adjective
—as·sess·mentnoun
As*sess"\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Assessed; p. pr. & vb. n. Assessing.] [OF. assesser to regulate, settle, LL. assessare to value for taxation, fr. L. assidere, supine as if assessum, to sit by, esp. of judges in a court, in LL. to assess, tax. Cf. Assize, v., Cess.]1. To value; to make a valuation or official estimate of for the purpose of taxation. 2. To apportion a sum to be paid by (a person, a community, or an estate), in the nature of a tax, fine, etc.; to impose a tax upon (a person, an estate, or an income) according to a rate or apportionment. 3. To determine and impose a tax or fine upon (a person, community, estate, or income); to tax; as, the club assessed each member twenty-five cents. 4. To fix or determine the rate or amount of. This sum is assessed and raised upon individuals by commissioners in the act. --Blackstone.
As*sess"or\, n. [L., one who sits beside, the assistant of a judge, fr. assid?re. See Assession. LL., one who arranges of determines the taxes, fr. assid?re. See Assess, v., and cf. Cessor.]1. One appointed or elected to assist a judge or magistrate with his special knowledge of the subject to be decided; as legal assessors, nautical assessors. --Mozley & W. 2. One who sits by another, as next in dignity, or as an assistant and adviser; an associate in office. Whence to his Son, The assessor of his throne, he thus began. --Milton. With his ignorance, his inclinations, and his fancy, as his assessors in judgment. --I. Taylor. 3. One appointed to assess persons or property for the purpose of taxation. --Bouvier.
As*size"\, n. [OE. assise, asise, OF. assise, F. assises, assembly of judges, the decree pronounced by them, tax, impost, fr. assis, assise, p. p. of asseoir, fr. L. assid?re to sit by; ad + sed[=e]re to sit. See Sit, Size, and cf. Excise, Assess.]1. An assembly of knights and other substantial men, with a bailiff or justice, in a certain place and at a certain time, for public business. [Obs.] 2. (Law) (a) A special kind of jury or inquest. (b) A kind of writ or real action. (c) A verdict or finding of a jury upon such writ. (d) A statute or ordinance in general. Specifically: (1) A statute regulating the weight, measure, and proportions of ingredients and the price of articles sold in the market; as, the assize of bread and other provisions; (2) A statute fixing the standard of weights and measures. (e) Anything fixed or reduced to a certainty in point of time, number, quantity, quality, weight, measure, etc.; as, rent of assize. --Glanvill. --Spelman. --Cowell. --Blackstone. --Tomlins. --Burrill. Note: [This term is not now used in England in the sense of a writ or real action, and seldom of a jury of any kind, but in Scotch practice it is still technically applied to the jury in criminal cases. --Stephen. --Burrill. --Erskine.] (f) A court, the sitting or session of a court, for the trial of processes, whether civil or criminal, by a judge and jury. --Blackstone. --Wharton. --Encyc. Brit. (g) The periodical sessions of the judges of the superior courts in every county of England for the purpose of administering justice in the trial and determination of civil and criminal cases; -- usually in the plural. --Brande. --Wharton. --Craig. --Burrill. (h) The time or place of holding the court of assize; -- generally in the plural, assizes. 3. Measure; dimension; size. [In this sense now corrupted into size.] An hundred cubits high by just assize. --Spenser. [Formerly written, as in French, assise.]
Cess\, n. [For sess, conts. from Assess.]1. A rate or tax. [Obs. or Prof. Eng. & Scot.] --Spenser. 2. Bound; measure. [Obs.] The poor jade is wrung in the withers out of all cess. --Shak.
Sit\, v. i. [imp. Sat(Sate, archaic); p. p. Sat (Sitten, obs.); p. pr. & vb. n. Sitting.] [OE. sitten, AS. sittan; akin to OS. sittian, OFries. sitta, D. zitten, G. sitzen, OHG. sizzen, Icel. sitja, SW. sitta, Dan. sidde, Goth. sitan, Russ. sidiete, L. sedere, Gr. ???, Skr. sad. [root]154. Cf. Assess,Assize, Cathedral, Chair, Dissident, Excise, Insidious, Possess, Reside, Sanhedrim, Seance, Seat, n., Sedate, 4th Sell, Siege, Session, Set, v. t., Sizar, Size, Subsidy.]1. To rest upon the haunches, or the lower extremity of the trunk of the body; -- said of human beings, and sometimes of other animals; as, to sit on a sofa, on a chair, or on the ground. And he came and took the book put of the right hand of him that sate upon the seat. --Bible (1551) (Rev. v. 7.) I pray you, jest, sir, as you sit at dinner. --Shak. 2. To perch; to rest with the feet drawn up, as birds do on a branch, pole, etc. 3. To remain in a state of repose; to rest; to abide; to rest in any position or condition. And Moses said to . . . the children of Reuben, Shall your brothren go to war, and shall ye sit here? --Num. xxxii. 6. Like a demigod here sit I in the sky. --Shak. 4. To lie, rest, or bear; to press or weigh; -- with on; as, a weight or burden sits lightly upon him. The calamity sits heavy on us. --Jer. Taylor. 5. To be adjusted; to fit; as, a coat sts well or ill. This new and gorgeous garment, majesty, Sits not so easy on me as you think. --Shak. 6. To suit one well or ill, as an act; to become; to befit; -- used impersonally. [Obs.] --Chaucer. 7. To cover and warm eggs for hatching, as a fowl; to brood; to incubate. As the partridge sitteth on eggs, and hatcheth them not. --Jer. xvii. 11. 8. To have position, as at the point blown from; to hold a relative position; to have direction. Like a good miller that knows how to grind, which way soever the wind sits. --Selden. Sits the wind in that quarter? --Sir W. Scott. 9. To occupy a place or seat as a member of an official body; as, to sit in Congress. 10. To hold a session; to be in session for official business; -- said of legislative assemblies, courts, etc.; as, the court sits in January; the aldermen sit to-night. 11. To take a position for the purpose of having some artistic representation of one's self made, as a picture or a bust; as, to sit to a painter. To sit at, to rest under; to be subject to. [Obs.] "A farmer can not husband his ground so well if he sit at a great rent". --Bacon. To sit at meat or at table, to be at table for eating. To sit down. (a) To place one's self on a chair or other seat; as, to sit down when tired. (b) To begin a siege; as, the enemy sat down before the town. (c) To settle; to fix a permanent abode. --Spenser. (d) To rest; to cease as satisfied. "Here we can not sit down, but still proceed in our search." --Rogers. To sit for a fellowship, to offer one's self for examination with a view to obtaining a fellowship. [Eng. Univ.] To sit out. (a) To be without engagement or employment. [Obs.] --Bp. Sanderson. (b) To outstay. To sit under, to be under the instruction or ministrations of; as, to sit under a preacher; to sit under good preaching. To sit up, to rise from, or refrain from, a recumbent posture or from sleep; to sit with the body upright; as, to sit up late at night; also, to watch; as, to sit up with a sick person. "He that was dead sat up, and began to speak." --Luke vii. 15.
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