assessment

noun

as·​sess·​ment ə-ˈses-mənt 

a-

1

: the action or an instance of making a judgment about something : the act of assessing something : appraisal

assessment of damages

an assessment of the president's achievements

2

: the amount assessed : an amount that a person is officially required to pay especially as a tax

the tax assessment on property

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History of Assessment

Assessment has two meanings (“an amount that a person is officially required to pay” and “the act of making a judgment about something”) so distinct that one might rightfully wonder if they come from different sources. They do not.

Both are derived from related senses of assess, a verb that for over 500 years has meant “to determine the rate or amount of (a tax).” The monetary sense of assessment is tied to this oldest use of assess. By the 19th century, the verb’s object shifted slightly to produce a new meaning, “to make an official valuation of (property) for the purposes of taxation.” It was but a short step from here to the broadened sense “to make a judgment about” that is the basis of assessment “the act of making a judgment.”

Synonyms

• tax

Examples of assessment in a Sentence

It's a difficult problem that requires careful assessment.

I don't agree with his assessment of the problem.

The owners claimed the tax assessment on their house was too high.

Recent Examples on the Web

This would give the house an assessment of about 81% of its market value, continuing the issue of too-low valuations. —Madeline King, Kansas City Star, 7 Sep. 2025

As large language models like OpenAI’s GPT-3 and GPT-4 exploded onto the scene, students and teaching assistants alike began questioning whether assessments ought to be handled differently. —Nick Lichtenberg, Fortune, 7 Sep. 2025

In their new book, veteran diplomat Robert O'Malley and a Mideast analyst Hussein Agha offer a candid assessment of the failures of the Mideast peace process based on their firsthand experience over decades in the region. —ABC News, 7 Sep. 2025

Roberts made that assessment of Scott earlier this week – before Scott gave up walk-off hits in back-to-back games. —Bill Plunkett, Oc Register, 7 Sep. 2025

Word History

Etymology

see assess

First Known Use

1534, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing assessment

• self-assessment
• special assessment

Rhymes for assessment

• impressment
• reassessment

Kids Definition

assessment

noun

as·​sess·​ment ə-ˈses-mənt 

a-

1

: the act of assessing

2

: the amount or value assessed