Assemble

How to spell assemble

8 letters · 3 syllables

How to pronounce assemble

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does assemble mean?

1. verbTo bring people or things together in one place, or to come together as a group.
2. verbTo fit or join separate parts together to make a finished object.

Assemble in a sentence

• The whole team will assemble in the boardroom at nine.

• It took an hour to assemble the flat-pack wardrobe.

• Organisers asked the crowd to assemble near the main gate.

• Workers on the line assemble each engine by hand.

Where does assemble come from?

Language of origin: French

This word travelled into English from the Old French assembler, meaning 'to bring together' or 'to gather', which English adopted in the 1200s. The French verb descended from the Late Latin assimulare, formed from the prefix ad- (meaning 'to' or 'towards', here in the sense of bringing things into one place) and simul (meaning 'together' or 'at the same time'). That same Latin simul lies behind everyday words like 'simultaneous' and 'similar', all carrying the idea of things being together or alike. The original force was simply 'to make come together', and from gathering people the sense broadened to gathering parts into a finished whole. The doubled s in the spelling reflects the assimilated ad- prefix, where the d shifted to match the following s, the same quiet doubling that catches writers out in 'assist' and 'assess'.

How the word is built

• as- (from ad-: to, together)
• sembl (from Latin simul: together)
• -e