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assay

as·say

UK/ˈæseɪ/ US/əˈseɪ/ uncommon archaic obsolete
noun (4) verb (2)

noun

1.

an appraisal of the state of affairs

  • “they made an assay of the contents”
  • “a check on its dependability under stress”
Synonyms
2.

a substance that is undergoing an analysis of its components

3.

a written report of the results of an analysis of the composition of some substance

4.

a quantitative or qualitative test of a substance (especially an ore or a drug) to determine its components; frequently used to test for the presence or concentration of infectious agents or antibodies etc.

verb

1.

analyze (chemical substances)

2.

make an effort or attempt

  • “He tried to shake off his fears”
  • “The infant had essayed a few wobbly steps”
  • “The police attempted to stop the thief”
  • “He sought to improve himself”
  • “She always seeks to do good in the world”
Synonyms

Origin

From Middle English assay (noun) and assayen (verb), from Anglo-Norman assai (noun) and Anglo-Norman assaier (verb), from Old French essai. Doublet of essay.

Phrases

  • assay dish
  • assay mark
  • assay office
  • assay plate
  • assay pound
  • assay ton
  • bandshift assay
  • Bradford assay

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

Narrower terms

See also

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.