- [uncountable, countable] the crime of attacking somebody physically
- Both men were charged with assault.
- sexual assaults
- assault on/upon somebody A significant number of indecent assaults on women go unreported.
Collocations CrimeCrimeCommitting a crimesee also indecent assault- commit a crime/a murder/a violent assault/a brutal killing/an armed robbery/fraud
- be involved in terrorism/a suspected arson attack/human trafficking
- engage/participate in criminal activity/illegal practices/acts of mindless vandalism
- steal somebody’s wallet/purse/(British English) mobile phone/(North American English) cell phone
- rob a bank/a person/a tourist
- break into/ (British English) burgle/ (North American English) burglarize a house/a home/an apartment
- hijack a plane/ship/bus
- smuggle drugs/weapons/arms
- traffic people/wildlife/narcotics/cocaine
- launder drug money (through something)
- forge documents/certificates/passports
- take/accept/pay somebody/offer (somebody) a bribe
- run a phishing/an email/an internet scam
- combat/fight crime/terrorism/corruption/drug trafficking
- prevent/stop credit-card fraud/child abuse/software piracy
- deter/stop criminals/burglars/thieves/shoplifters/vandals
- reduce/tackle/crack down on knife/gun/violent/street crime; (especially British English) antisocial behaviour
- foil a bank raid/a terrorist plot
- help/support/protect the victims of crime
- report a crime/a theft/a rape/an attack/(especially British English) an incident to the police
- witness the crime/attack/murder/incident
- investigate a murder/(especially North American English) a homicide/a burglary/a robbery/the alleged incident
- conduct/launch/pursue an investigation (into…); (especially British English) a police/murder inquiry
- investigate/reopen a criminal/murder case
- examine/investigate/find fingerprints at the crime scene/the scene of crime
- collect/gather forensic evidence
- uncover new evidence/a fraud/a scam/a plot/a conspiracy/political corruption/a cache of weapons
- describe/identify a suspect/the culprit/the perpetrator/the assailant/the attacker
- question/interrogate a suspect/witness
- solve/crack the case
Extra ExamplesTopics Crime and punishmentc1- Better street lighting has helped reduce the number of assaults against women.
- He reported the assault to the police.
- allegations of police assault on the boy
- assaults committed by teenagers
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- brutal
- ferocious
- savage
- …
- series
- wave
- carry out
- commit
- be the victim of
- …
- happen
- occur
- take place
- …
- assault against
- assault on
- assault upon
- …
- allegations of assault
- assault and battery
Definitions on the go
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- [countable] assault (on/upon/against somebody/something) (by an army, etc.) the act of attacking a building, an area, etc. in order to take control of it synonym attack
- An assault on the capital was launched in the early hours of the morning.
Extra Examples- air assaults by fighter planes
- a series of assaults on enemy targets
- The garrison was built to withstand assaults.
- The factory came under assault from soldiers in the mountains.
- After an all-out assault the village was captured by the enemy.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- all-out
- direct
- frontal
- …
- series
- begin
- carry out
- conduct
- …
- course
- operation
- gun
- …
- under assault
- assault on
- [countable] assault (on/upon something) the act of trying to achieve something that is difficult or dangerous
- The government has mounted a new assault on unemployment.
- a two-year legal assault on alleged tax fraud
- Three people died during an assault on the mountain (= while trying to climb it).
- [countable] an act of criticizing somebody/something severely synonym attack
- The suggested closures came under assault from all parties.
- assault on/upon/against somebody/something The paper's assault on the president was totally unjustified.
Extra Examples- She used the article to make a sustained assault on her former political allies.
- He launched into a verbal assault on tabloid journalism.
Oxford Collocations Dictionaryadjective- all-out
- direct
- frontal
- …
- series
- begin
- carry out
- conduct
- …
- course
- operation
- gun
- …
- under assault
- assault on
- [countable, uncountable] (law) an act that threatens to harm somebody physically, whether or not actual harm is done
Word OriginMiddle English: from Old French asaut (noun), assauter (verb), based on Latin ad- ‘to’ + saltare, frequentative of salire ‘to leap’. Compare with assail.
Check pronunciation:
assault