assassinationas‧sas‧sin‧a‧tion /əˌsæsəˈneɪʃən $ əˌsæsənˈeɪ-/ ●○○ noun [countable, uncountable] 
the assassination of Anwar Sadat He narrowly escaped an assassination attempt (=when someone tries but fails to kill someone else). → character assassination at character(6)
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER DICTIONARIES
- Flowers were laid to commemorate the anniversary of the assassination of John Lennon
- The assassination of Franz Ferdinand of Austria in Sarajevo led to the First World War.
- the assassination of Lincoln
- Three foreign diplomats have been killed in a series of assassinations.
- His assassination was predictable, although how the murderer passed by the android security guards had yet to be explained.
- In December 1989 he had survived a car-bomb assassination attempt in Cairo.
- There was tension-Gligorov survived an assassination attempt-but no fighting.
- This was Antonio Lozano Gracias, whose appointment as attorney general Zedillo hoped would give the assassination investigations credibility.
Longman Language Activatorthe act or crime of killing someone
the act or crime of deliberately killing someone: · New York paid tribute to the thousands of innocent people murdered on September 11th.· a series of brutal murders· The incidence of violent crimes -- murder, rape, and assault -- has increased in inner city areas.murder of: · Ronny Jones was found guilty of the murder of a 15 year old girl.commit murder (=to murder someone): · The gun was found five miles from where the murder was committed.attempted murder (=the crime of unsuccessfully trying to kill someone): · He was charged with attempted murder and found guilty.murder victim: · The murder victim has not yet been identified.
the crime of killing someone, especially deliberately - used especially in American legal contexts: · 70 per cent of homicides take place within the family.· As yet no evidence has been found to suggest that this death was homicide.homicide case/charge/detective: · A newspaper article criticized his handling of a homicide case
the crime of killing someone by accident, or while you are trying to defend yourself: · She denied murdering her husband, but pleaded guilty to manslaughter.· The court decided there was insufficient evidence for a manslaughter charge.manslaughter of: · The driver of the train was charged with the manslaughter of 13 people.
when someone is deliberately killed - used especially in news reports: · A terrorist group has claimed responsibility for the killing.killing of: · The defendant claimed that he was only avenging the killing of his brother.contract killing (=when someone has been paid to kill someone else): · Perry said Taylor approached him and asked him to carry out a contract killing on Johnson.
when someone deliberately kills a famous or important person, especially for political reasons: · Three foreign diplomats have been killed in a series of assassinations.assassination of: · The assassination of Franz Ferdinand of Austria in Sarajevo led to the First World War.· Flowers were laid to commemorate the anniversary of the assassination of John Lennon.
formal if the police think that foul play is involved in a person's death, they think that the person has been murdered: · There was no question of foul play - a suicide note was found near the body.· The medical report showed no signs of poison in the body but the police still suspect foul play.
to damage the reputation of someone or something · If a representative gets drunk at a convention, it may harm their firm's reputation.· Sabine was completely loyal to you. She would never do anything to damage your reputation.
to give a group or place a bad reputation by behaving in an unacceptable way: · Students who are rude and scruffy give the school a bad name.· The regular brawling and violence in the bar had given it a bad name.· He was the type of person that gives insurance salesmen a bad name.
formal to damage the reputation of the organization that you work for or the job that you do by doing something bad or illegal - use this especially in legal or official contexts: · This is exactly the kind of incident that brings international companies into disrepute.· The officers were charged with bringing the police force into disrepute.
to make people stop trusting or believing in someone or something: · There was a plot by certain members of the opposition to discredit the government.· The old leaders were discredited by the massive defeats at Verdun and Flanders.· Through your selfishness, you have brought discredit on yourself and your whole family.
a cruel and unfair attack on someone's character: · All too often politicians discredit themselves by engaging in character assassination.
something that harms someone's character, reputation etc in someone's opinion: a slur/stain on somebody's character/reputation etc: · Baker accused the press of casting a slur on his reputation.· He was discharged from the army without a stain on his character.
an attempt to damage the reputation of a political opponent by secretly spreading false ideas about them, for example by telling a newspaper that they have done bad or dishonest things: · Kingsley denies all the rumours, saying he's the victim of a vicious smear campaign.smear campaign/whispering campaign against: · Allegations of instability, untrustworthiness and lack of political judgement - all these were part of the whispering campaign against her.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE ENTRY He narrowly escaped an assassination attempt (=when someone tries but fails to kill someone else).COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
the act of murdering an important personassassination of He narrowly escaped an assassination attempt (=when someone tries but fails to kill someone else). (=an attempt to kill a leader)· De Gaulle survived an assassination attempt in 1961.
· The assassination plot to kill General de Gaulle was unsuccessful.
COLLOCATIONS FROM THE CORPUSADJECTIVE· Zak saying it was political assassination and nothing to do with the staff of the paper.· While there is political violence, it has not descended to political assassination.· So were my years of flying in and out of countries where political torture and assassination were par for the course.· The press, too, was irresponsible and factional, given to vitriolic personal attacks and political character assassination.
NOUN· It was the scene of a failed assassination attempt on the royal couple at a charity concert nine years ago.· There was shouting, the kind of confused commotion that usually attends an assassination attempt.· In December 1989 he had survived a car-bomb assassination attempt in Cairo.· So far, no material evidence has linked Pyongyang to the assassination attempt.· There was tension-Gligorov survived an assassination attempt-but no fighting.· Patricio Martnez survived the assassination attempt.· It was clear he had had nothing to do with the assassination attempt.· The White Lions protected him from many assassination attempts and his personal retinue of Sapherian wizards countered all death-spells.
· But if character assassination were a crime, there'd be a long list of suspects.· But does this justify the character assassination in which Grassley et al have engaged?· Those who go in for character assassination create human conflicts and can easily end up as victims.· What he had just heard was character assassination.· They have turned character assassination into a state-of-the-art enterprise to get big ratings.· Democrats are not innocent in the game of character assassination.· There are numerous recent cases of character assassination and reputation assault that would discourage any sane person from accepting high government appointment.· The press, too, was irresponsible and factional, given to vitriolic personal attacks and political character assassination.
· Daley, as it turned out, seemed to be the only person who knew about an assassination plot.
VERB· Mihailovic wrote an obituary for a Belgrade newspaper following Arkan's assassination.
· Within five years, surviving numerous assassination attempts, he managed to convert thousands of Calvinists back to Catholicism.· In December 1989 he had survived a car-bomb assassination attempt in Cairo.· Patricio Martnez survived the assassination attempt.· There was tension-Gligorov survived an assassination attempt-but no fighting.· Bernadette Devlin had a close call, but she survived the assassination attempt against her.· His good fortune in surviving subsequent assassination attempts increased his belief in his divine protection.· Like the Shah, Hassan had survived several assassination attempts.
the assassination of Anwar Sadat He narrowly escaped an assassination attempt (=when someone tries but fails to kill someone else). → character assassination at character(6)