Assessment

/əˈsɛsmənt/

nounIntermediateVery CommonLegal

Definitions

1

The action of making a judgment about something.

/əˈsɛsmənt/

nounneutralIntermediate
Legal

The act of evaluating something.

The assessment of the damage was extensive.

💡 Simply: Figuring out the value or importance of something.

More Examples

2

Her performance received a positive assessment.

How It's Used

Education

"The teacher gave a detailed assessment of each student's progress."

Business

"A risk assessment is crucial before starting any new project."

From Middle French *assement, from Old French *asseement "estimation," from asseer "to seat, establish," from Latin *assidere "to sit beside, to assess." The modern sense developed gradually from the original meaning of 'taxation'.

The word originally referred to the process of determining taxes, and gradually broadened to include a wider range of evaluations.

Memory tip

Think 'assess' + 'ment' - the result of an assessment.

assesmentasessmentassesemt

Usage

40%Spoken
60%Written