assailant

C2 Topic:People & Society

US /əˈseɪlənt/ UK /əˈseɪlənt/ See IPA manual

Freq #14233

Meanings

1

noun
a person who physically attacks another person

The witness could not identify the masked assailant.
2

noun
a person who forcefully attacks an argument, reputation, or position

The senator answered each assailant of the proposal in turn.
3

adj
attacking or making an assault; now rare

The defenders drove the assailant troops back from the gate.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a person who physically... attacker aggressor

2 noun · a person who forcefully... opponent critic

3 adj · attacking or making an... attacking aggressive

Opposites

defender protector ally

Word family

Related forms assail assault attack

Etymology

From Old French assaillant, the present participle of assaillir, 'to attack,' ultimately from Latin assilire, 'to leap upon.' The Latin verb combines ad- ('toward') with salire ('to jump'). English first used assailant adjectivally and then as a noun for one who attacks.

Topics

People & Society Word Formation & Derivatives Register & Style

External links

# assailant

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2
**Part of speech:** noun, adj
**IPA (US):** /əˈseɪlənt/
**IPA (UK):** /əˈseɪlənt/
**Frequency rank:** 14233

## Meanings
1. a person who physically attacks another person
2. a person who forcefully attacks an argument, reputation, or position
3. attacking or making an assault; now rare

## Examples
- The witness could not identify the masked assailant.
- The senator answered each assailant of the proposal in turn.
- The defenders drove the assailant troops back from the gate.

## Synonyms
- attacker
- aggressor
- opponent
- critic

## Antonyms
- defender
- protector
- ally

## Related Forms
- assail
- assault
- attack

## Etymology
From Old French assaillant, the present participle of assaillir, 'to attack,' ultimately from Latin assilire, 'to leap upon.' The Latin verb combines ad- ('toward') with salire ('to jump'). English first used assailant adjectivally and then as a noun for one who attacks.

## Topics
- People & Society
- Word Formation & Derivatives
- Register & Style

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