assignment

assignment — noun

1. a specific task that a teacher or boss tells you to finish, usually with a clear

1.nounB1
Definition

a specific task that a teacher or boss tells you to finish, usually with a clear topic and a deadline.

Example

Mr. Lin gave the class a writing assignment about their summer holidays.

give somebody an assignment

Paloma stayed up until midnight to finish her history assignment.

finish an assignment

Common collocations
  • written assignment
  • research assignment
  • group assignment
  • complete an assignment
Synonyms
  • task

    more general — any duty given, school or otherwise

  • homework

    school work done at home; usually uncountable, no plural

  • project

    longer, larger piece of work, often involving research

Grammar Patterns

complete an assignment

hand in an assignment

Usage Note

Common in school and university contexts; often attached to a subject (history assignment, math assignment) or a verb (do, hand in, submit, mark).

Common Mistakes

I have an assignment work for tomorrow.
I have an assignment for tomorrow.
'assignment' already means a piece of work; do not add 'work' after it.
I will make my assignment tonight.
I will do my assignment tonight.
Use 'do' (or 'finish'), not 'make', with assignment.

2. a particular job that takes you away from your normal workplace, often to anothe

2.nounB2
Definition

a particular job that takes you away from your normal workplace, often to another city or country, and usually for a fixed period.

Example

The reporter took a dangerous assignment in northern Syria.

take a [adjective] assignment in [place]

Detective Park was given a secret assignment to find the missing witness.

passive: be given an assignment to + verb

Common collocations
  • foreign assignment
  • dangerous assignment
  • special assignment
  • overseas assignment
Synonyms
  • posting

    very close in meaning; emphasises being placed somewhere by an employer

  • mission

    stronger sense of important goal, often military or humanitarian

  • deployment

    military or emergency context — being sent to a working location

Grammar Patterns

on assignment in [place]

an assignment to [place]

Usage Note

Frequently used about journalists, soldiers, diplomats, and company staff sent abroad. Distinguish from sense 1: sense 2 implies travel and a posting, not a homework-style task.

Common Mistakes

She is in assignment in Paris.
She is on assignment in Paris.
The fixed phrase is 'on assignment', not 'in'.

3. being out in the field on a work posting, rather than back at your home office.

3.nounB2
Definition

being out in the field on a work posting, rather than back at your home office.

Example

Hannah was on assignment in Kenya when the news broke.

be on assignment in [place]

Two of our photographers are on assignment at the climate summit this week.

be on assignment at [event]

Common collocations
  • go on assignment
  • be on assignment
  • while on assignment
Synonyms
  • on duty

    focuses on being responsible for a role at a given time, not on travel

  • in the field

    very close — out doing real work away from the office

Antonyms

Grammar Patterns

be on assignment

while on assignment

Usage Note

Almost always appears in the fixed phrase 'on assignment' (no article, uncountable). Distinguish from sense 2: sense 2 names the posting itself ('a dangerous assignment'); sense 3 only describes someone's current status while doing it ('she is on assignment').

Common Mistakes

He is on an assignment in Korea right now.
He is on assignment in Korea right now.
In this fixed phrase, no article is used before 'assignment'.

4. the formal act of handing out tasks, roles, or staff to specific people or place

4.nounC1
Definition

the formal act of handing out tasks, roles, or staff to specific people or places.

Example

The manager handles the assignment of duties at the start of every shift.

assignment of [tasks]

Fair assignment of seats prevented arguments at the wedding banquet.

fair assignment of [things]

Common collocations
  • assignment of duties
  • assignment of cases
  • fair assignment
  • random assignment
Synonyms
  • allocation

    very close — the formal sharing out of resources or roles

  • distribution

    wider — handing out things, not just jobs

  • appointment

    official act of placing somebody in a post; often a single person

Grammar Patterns

the assignment of [something] to [somebody]

Usage Note

Almost always uncountable and formal, often with 'of' linking the thing given out and 'to' linking the receiver. Distinguish from sense 1: sense 1 is the task; sense 4 is the act of handing it out.

Common Mistakes

The assignments of duties was fast.
The assignment of duties was fast.
In this sense, 'assignment' is uncountable, so no plural -s.

Word family

  • assign
    verbB2
  • assignee
    nounC2
  • assigner
    nounC2
  • reassign
    verbC1
  • reassignment
    nounC1

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

These four words all describe work somebody must do, but they fit different settings. 'Homework' is the narrowest: school work students do at home, and it is uncountable, so you say 'a lot of homework', not 'a homework'. 'Assignment' is more specific than homework — one defined piece of work with a topic and deadline, used in both schools and offices: 'I have three assignments this week.' 'Task' is the most general; any small or large duty, formal or casual, can be a task: 'My first task was to make tea.' 'Project' suggests something bigger that runs over weeks and often involves research, planning, or teamwork: 'a science project on solar panels'. So a teacher might give the class a project, broken into several assignments, while the daily writing they do at home is just homework.

assignment ↗homework ↗task ↗project ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

  • writing assignment
  • research assignment
  • homework assignment
  • foreign assignment
  • special assignment
  • group assignment

Adverbs

  • randomly assigned

Phrases

  • complete an assignment
  • hand in an assignment
  • submit an assignment
  • give somebody an assignment
  • be on assignment

Prepositions

  • on assignment
  • assignment to
  • assignment of

Etymology

LatinOld FrenchMiddle EnglishModern English

The English noun 'assignment' grew from the verb 'assign', which entered Middle English in the 1300s from Old French 'assigner'. The French word came from Latin 'assignare', built from 'ad-' (to) plus 'signare' (to mark with a sign), so the original idea was 'to mark something out for somebody'. The '-ment' ending, also from French, turned the verb into a noun meaning 'the result of assigning'. Early uses in English law referred to handing over property or rights; the school and workplace meanings developed later as offices and classrooms began handing out written tasks.