assassinate

verb as·sas·si·nate \ ə-ˈsa-sə-ˌnāt \

Updated on: 12 Apr 2018

assassinated; assassinating

transitive verb

1 : to murder (a usually prominent person) by sudden or secret attack often for political reasons

a plot to assassinate the governor

2 : to injure or destroy unexpectedly and treacherously

assassinate a man's character

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assassination

play \ə-ˌsa-sə-ˈnā-shən\ noun

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assassinator

play \-ˈsa-sə-ˌnā-tər\ noun

See assassinate defined for English-language learners

See assassinate defined for kids

Examples of assassinate in a Sentence

They discovered a secret plot to assassinate the governor.
President John F. Kennedy was assassinated in 1963.

Recent Examples of assassinate from the Web

Specifically, something of hip-hop’s genesis can be detected amid the chaos following April 4, the day Martin Luther King Jr. was assassinated.

— vann r. newkirk ii, The Atlantic, "Fear of a Black 'Messiah'," 8 Apr. 2018
In the years before he was assassinated on April 4, 1968, the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. shifted in his speeches from a focus on achieving legal racial equality toward something broader: Social and economic justice for all.

— Anchorage Daily News, "On the anniversary of Martin Luther King Jr.’s death, faith groups sharpen their focus on systemic bias," 4 Apr. 2018
Over 200 people marched down Capitol Avenue Wednesday afternoon as part of the MLK Memorial March to Move, exactly half a century to the day after the civil rights activist was assassinated in Memphis.

— morgan watkins, The Courier-Journal, "Marchers at Kentucky Capitol urge people to fight pension reform 50 years after MLK died," 4 Apr. 2018
When Democrat Dianne Feinstein ran for governor of California in 1990, her signature ad paid homage to her leadership in San Francisco after two city leaders were assassinated.

— janet hook, WSJ, "Women Running for Office in 2018 Wear Gender as Badge of Honor," 3 Apr. 2018
He was assassinated in his driveway by a KKK member.

— adam h. beasley, miamiherald, "Dolphins' Stills hangs with Kaepernick, follows in MLK's footsteps and sees the South | Miami Herald," 6 Mar. 2018
Where are the members of the Prairie View A&M University gospel choir who serenaded Martin Luther King Jr. at the Lorraine Hotel in Memphis, days before he was assassinated?

— nichelle smith, USA TODAY, "1968: Yearlong project captures the moments that transformed the nation," 15 Jan. 2018
There is personal history too -- Queen Elizabeth's cousin, Louis Mountbatten, was assassinated by the Provisional IRA (Irish Republican Army) in 1979, using a bomb planted in his fishing boat.

— judith vonberg and max foster, CNN, "Prince Harry and Meghan Markle visit Northern Ireland," 23 Mar. 2018
The royal family endured its own heartbreak through the troubled history, with Prince Charles’ beloved uncle, Louis Mountbatten, assassinated in 1979 by an IRA bomb.

— simon perry, PEOPLE.com, "Harry and Meghan Make a Surprise Visit to Northern Ireland: Why It Was a Secret Until Now," 23 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'assassinate.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of assassinate

see assassin

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: 1600

in the meaning defined at sense 1

See Words from the same year

assassinate Synonyms

Phrases

do away with;

Synonym Discussion of assassinate

kill, slay, murder, assassinate, dispatch, execute mean to deprive of life. kill merely states the fact of death caused by an agency in any manner.

- killed in an accident
- frost killed the plants

slay is a chiefly literary term implying deliberateness and violence but not necessarily motive.

- slew thousands of the Philistines

murder specifically implies stealth and motive and premeditation and therefore full moral responsibility.

- convicted of murdering a rival

assassinate applies to deliberate killing openly or secretly often for political motives.

- terrorists assassinated the Senator

dispatch stresses quickness and directness in putting to death.

- dispatched the sentry with one bullet

execute stresses putting to death as a legal penalty.

- executed by lethal gas

ASSASSINATE Defined for English Language Learners

assassinate

verb

: to kill (someone, such as a famous or important person) usually for political reasons

ASSASSINATE Defined for Kids

assassinate

verb as·sas·si·nate \ ə-ˈsa-sə-ˌnāt \

assassinated; assassinating

: to murder a usually important person by a surprise or secret attack

Learn More about assassinate

See words that rhyme with assassinate Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for assassinate Spanish Central: Translation of assassinate Nglish: Translation of assassinate for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of assassinate for Arabic speakers

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ASSASSINATE Defined for English Language Learners

assassinate

ASSASSINATE Defined for Kids

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