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to give support or aid to; help:
Please assist him in moving the furniture.
to be associated with as an or helper.
to give aid or help.
to be present, as at a meeting or ceremony.
Sports.

Baseball. a play that helps to put out a batter or base runner.
Basketball, Ice Hockey. a play that helps a teammate in gaining a goal.
the official credit scored for such plays.

a helpful act:
She finished her homework without an assist from her father.
Machinery. an electrical, hydraulic, or mechanical means of increasing power, efficiency, or ease of use:
a luxury automobile equipped with assists for brakes, steering, windows, and seat adjustment.
Contemporary Examples

In a newspaper interview Sunday, he claimed the government had assisted the militants with arms and funds.
Whose Side Is Turkey On? Jamie Dettmer October 14, 2014

The acts ranged from the mundane to the unexpected: assisted a tourist with directions because he looked lost.
It’s Official: Religion Doesn’t Make You More Moral Elizabeth Picciuto September 22, 2014

The models were assisted onto the platformed catwalk one-by-one, and their veils were lifted to reveal their faces.
The Blessing of Thom Browne Latest Collection Erin Cunningham February 10, 2014

Two LAPD patrol officers, who were in the area at the time, assisted Lalezary with detaining him.
Los Angeles Serial-Arson Suspect Charged Christine Pelisek January 2, 2012

Would Bashar al-Assad use chemical weapons against a NATO military operation like the one that assisted the Libyan opposition?
Assad’s Lethal Arsenal of WMD Bruce Riedel August 25, 2011

Historical Examples

Together they lifted Berlin and assisted him to the house between them.
Frank Merriwell’s Son Burt L. Standish

And then very gently he awakened her and assisted her to rise.
A Prisoner of Morro Upton Sinclair

We changed position and assisted the 51st in repulsing the attack.
Personal Recollections of the Civil War James Madison Stone

But as this republic was not assisted by the Yugoslav Government it only lasted for a week.
The Birth of Yugoslavia, Volume 2 Henry Baerlein

The friends of Cepheus, however, and those who assisted Perseus, were saved from the same fate by a previous warning of Perseus.
Heathen Mythology Various

verb
to give help or support to (a person, cause, etc); aid
to work or act as an assistant or subordinate to (another)
(hockey:Ice) to help (a team-mate) to score, as by passing the puck
(archaic) (intransitive) foll by at. to be present; attend
noun
(US & Canadian) the act of helping; aid; assistance
(baseball) the act of a player who throws or deflects a batted ball in such a way that a team is enabled to put out an opponent
(sport)

a pass or other action by a player which enables another player to score a goal
a credit given for such an action

v.

early 15c., from Middle French assister “to stand by, help, put, place, assist” (14c.), from Latin assistere “stand by, take a stand near, attend,” from ad- “to” (see ad-) + sistere “take a stand, cause to stand,” from PIE *siste-, reduplicated form of root *sta- “to stand” (see stet). Related: Assisted; assisting. Medical assisted suicide attested from 1884.
n.

1570s, “an act of assistance,” from assist (v.). In the sporting sense attested 1877 in baseball, 1925 in ice hockey.