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

duty

imposition

impost

levy

tax
See all Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

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 WebSome comments noted that
their interpretations of the green shapes lined up with
Yilin’s assessment. Erin Clements, Peoplemag, 5 Dec. 2023But
—

with the exceptions of Florida and New York City, most

places do not routinely collect information on removals
from school for psychiatric assessments. Annie Ma, Fortune, 5
—

Dec. 2023Victoria’s Secret, Foot Locker, Ulta Beauty and

Dollar Tree offered somewhat mixed assessments of the state
of the shopper last week. Hardika Singh, WSJ, 4 Dec.
—

2023See More
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources
to illustrate current usage of the word 'assessment.' Any opinions expressed
in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its
editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History
Etymology
see ASSESS

First Known Use

1534, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of assessment was in 1534
See more words from the same year

Phrases Containing assessment

 special assessment
  self-assessment

Dictionary Entries Near assessment

assession
assessment
assessment company
See More Nearby Entries

Cite this Entry

Style

“Assessment.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-

Webster,
https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/assessmen
t. Accessed 17 Dec. 2023.
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Kids Definition

assessment
noun
as·sess·ment ə-ˈses-mənt
a-
1
: the act of assessing
2
: the amount or value assessed

More from Merriam-Webster on assessment

Nglish: Translation of assessment for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of assessment for Arabic
Speakers
Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about assessment
Last Updated: 12 Dec 2023 - Updated example sentences
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