noun / verb · formal
assault
/əˈsɔːlt/a·SALT
Band 6-7speakingtask2
a violent physical attack; (verb) to make a violent physical attack on someone
Examples
“He was charged with assault after the street fight.”
“The victim suffered serious injuries in the assault.”
“She accused her neighbour of assaulting her late at night.”
Band 8 sentence
“Incidents of sexual assault often go unreported, which hampers efforts to bring perpetrators to justice.”
Collocations
- sexual assault
- physical assault
- charged with assault
Word family
assault nounassault verbassaulting / assaulted verb forms
Common mistakes
He was assault.→He was assaulted.
They charged him of assault.→They charged him with assault.
Say it for a higher band
5attack→6physical attack→7+assault
Synonyms
attack
battery
Easily confused
attack
“The protesters were involved in a violent attack on the police.”
battery
“He was charged with battery after hitting the victim.”
Related words
Learn this word with the rest of its set, and get reminded at the right time.
In Crime & Law
Learn it with its set