assignment
assignment — noun
1. a specific task that a teacher or boss tells you to finish, usually with a clear
a specific task that a teacher or boss tells you to finish, usually with a clear topic and a deadline.
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
Sofia uploaded her biology assignment on plant cells just before the midnight deadline.
Nia got a high mark on her chemistry assignment about plastics.
The teacher told the children to work in pairs on the next assignment.
文法句型
complete an assignment
hand in an assignment
用法筆記
Common in school and university contexts; often attached to a subject (history assignment, math assignment) or a verb (do, hand in, submit, mark).
常見錯誤
2. a particular job that takes you away from your normal workplace, often to anothe
a particular job that takes you away from your normal workplace, often to another city or country, and usually for a fixed period.
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
Mei Lin asked her boss for a foreign assignment in Tokyo.
The diplomat returned home after a four-year assignment in Brazil.
- 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
文法句型
on assignment in [place]
an assignment to [place]
用法筆記
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.
常見錯誤
3. being out in the field on a work posting, rather than back at your home office.
being out in the field on a work posting, rather than back at your home office.
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]
While on assignment in Berlin, the journalist met an old school friend.
Captain Reyes spends most of the year on assignment in remote villages.
- 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
- off duty
not currently working
文法句型
be on assignment
while on assignment
用法筆記
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').
常見錯誤
4. the formal act of handing out tasks, roles, or staff to specific people or place
the formal act of handing out tasks, roles, or staff to specific people or places.
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]
The army's assignment of new recruits to units takes about two weeks.
Ms. Tan oversees the assignment of cases to the junior lawyers.
- 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
文法句型
the assignment of [something] to [somebody]
用法筆記
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.