Definition of "assassinate" []

• To murder (a prominent person) by surprise attack, as for political reasons. (verb-transitive)
• To destroy or injure treacherously: assassinate a rival's character. (verb-transitive)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "In my hypo, the power to assassinate is constrained by the preference for atrial."
• "CLANCY: All right, so Pat Robertson there saying he didn't use the word assassinate, but you did hear that in the other clip."
• "You think it's accurate to use the word assassinate in what the - Regardless of the heavy criticism, doesn't it diminish real assassinations when you throw up the word assassinate because Sarah Palin didn't like some of the questions she got in an interview?"