verb

assign

uh-SYNE/əˈsaɪn/

To designate something as belonging to a particular recipient or source.

The manager assigns each volunteer a task.

A teacher hands one student a broom, another a basket, and another a watering can, giving each person a specific classroom task.

Etymology

The pieces express marking something out for someone: Latin assignare meant to allot by a sign. That act of designation connects legal allotment with allocating tasks, roles, places, or values.

In context

James B. Glattfelder5:58

And we also assign a value to the company given by the operating revenue.

James B. Glattfelder: Who controls the world?

Princeton University0:21

Each year, I assign a book to the incoming class

'Every Day the River Changes: Four Weeks Down the Magdalena' by Jordan Salama selected as Pre-read

More examples

The company is assigning the patent to its subsidiary.
The report assigns the failure to a damaged valve.
She assigned a number to every sample.

Forms

assign · assigns · assigned · assigning

Similar words

allocate: Allocate emphasizes distributing a limited resource.
designate: Designate names something for a role rather than necessarily giving a task.