assistant

Meanings

1. 1nouncountable

   A person whose job is to help someone else do their work.

   Grammar: Often followed by to or preceded by a job: an assistant to the director.

   Patterns

   • an assistant to someone
   • an assistant in something

   The chef's assistant chopped vegetables all morning.

   She works as an assistant to the senior editor.

   A research assistant helped him collect the data.

2. 2adjectivebefore a noun

   Ranking just below the person in a senior post.

   Grammar: Comes before a job title: assistant manager, assistant coach.

   Patterns

   • assistant to something

   The assistant manager opened the store today.

   He was promoted to assistant principal last year.

   The assistant coach led the practice session.

3. 3nouncountableBritish

   A shop worker who serves customers.

   Grammar: Mostly British: a shop assistant; Americans usually say salesclerk.

   Patterns

   • a shop assistant

   The shop assistant wrapped the gift neatly.

   I asked a sales assistant where the shoes were.

4. 4nouncountablecomputing

   A software program or device that answers questions or carries out tasks when asked.

   Grammar: Often used in the phrases virtual assistant or digital assistant.

   Patterns

   • a virtual assistant

   I asked my voice assistant to set a timer.

   The digital assistant reminded her about the meeting.

   This virtual assistant can book appointments for you.

Word forms

Common combinations

personal assistant

Her personal assistant manages her calendar.

teaching assistant

A teaching assistant graded the exams.

assistant professor

He became an assistant professor at the university.

shop assistant

The shop assistant offered a bag.

executive assistant

The executive assistant screens all calls.

virtual assistant

A virtual assistant answered the question.

Synonyms and how they differ

aide

Aide often suggests helping a prominent person, such as a politician, with a range of duties.

helper

Helper is informal and casual, with no sense of a formal job.

deputy

Deputy means someone who can act in the senior person's place, which is more than an assistant usually does.

secretary

Secretary points to office and clerical duties specifically.

Opposites

Word family

assist verb

to help someone do something

assistance noun

help or support

assisted adjective

done with help

assistantship noun

a paid post as an assistant, often at a university

Commonly confused: assistant or assistance?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “assistant”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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