assail
to attack vigorously or violently; assault.
to attack with arguments, criticism, ridicule, abuse, etc.: to assail one's opponent with slander.
to undertake with the purpose of mastering: He assailed his studies with new determination.
to impinge upon; make an impact on; beset: His mind was assailed by conflicting arguments. The light assailed their eyes.
Origin of assail
1synonym study For assail
Other words for assail
Other words from assail
- as·sail·a·ble, adjective
- as·sail·a·ble·ness, noun
- as·sail·er, noun
- as·sail·ment, noun
- un·as·sailed, adjective
- un·as·sail·ing, adjective
Words Nearby assail
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use assail in a sentence
Back in February, he assailed long-term care workers who declined the vaccine.
GOP West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice is done with all that nonsense on vaccines | Aaron Blake | September 9, 2021 | Washington PostAs warming mercilessly assailed them, I clung to the knowledge that the glacier I knew best remained the exception.
Cordell Hull, the congressman known as the “father” of the income tax, assailed the decision, according to scholar Marjorie Kornhauser.
The Secret IRS Files: Trove of Never-Before-Seen Records Reveal How the Wealthiest Avoid Income Tax | by Jesse Eisinger, Jeff Ernsthausen and Paul Kiel | June 8, 2021 | ProPublicaCertainly, the past year alone has assailed each of us with the fear of covid infection, loneliness, the death of loved ones and sickening instances of racial and ethnic injustice.
Cheer yourself up with light comedies from another era | Michael Dirda | March 31, 2021 | Washington PostAhead of the vote, GOP lawmakers assailed the legislation as a defund-the-police effort.
House passes expansive policing overhaul bill named in honor of George Floyd | Felicia Sonmez, Colby Itkowitz | March 4, 2021 | Washington Post
Politics seems to assail Carvalho, forcing him to take up former cudgels and defend his corner.
The Foodie Detective: The Pepe Carvalho Novels by Manuel Vázquez Montalbán | Malcolm Forbes | October 3, 2012 | THE DAILY BEASTThe only group that it was okay to assail, she says, was liberals.
Days later, Al Gore suddenly surfaced after months of silence to assail President Obama for his failure to lead on climate change.
She felt the temptation assail her, as of late it had been assailing her faintly, to explore this territory.
The Daughters of Danaus | Mona CairdThe bishop and his episcopals can not be hair-brained enough to seek to restore old conditions and assail our liberty.
The Pilgrim's Shell or Fergan the Quarryman | Eugne SueThey did not understand this manouvre, and supposed it to signify that the lieutenant did not deem it prudent to assail them.
The History of England in Three Volumes, Vol.III. | E. Farr and E. H. NolanWithout waiting for them to assail him, the youth dashed forward like a panther at bay.
The Young Ranchers | Edward S. EllisIf he wheeled about to assail the buck he was without a single weapon, while the Sioux was doubly armed.
Two Boys in Wyoming | Edward S. Ellis
British Dictionary definitions for assail
/ (əˈseɪl) /
to attack violently; assault
to criticize or ridicule vehemently, as in argument
to beset or disturb: his mind was assailed by doubts
to encounter with the intention of mastering: to assail a problem; to assail a difficult mountain ridge
Origin of assail
1Derived forms of assail
- assailable, adjective
- assailer, noun
- assailment, noun
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
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