What does "assertion" mean?

1. (a strong claim) a statement where you say something is true, often with a lot of confidence. 2. (insisting on a right) the act of making sure your rights or power are recognized. 3. (programming check) a command in a computer program that checks if a condition is true while the code is running. 4. (audit claim) a claim made by a company about its money that an accountant checks.

How do you use "assertion"?

Often followed by a 'that' clause or the preposition 'of'. Commonly used in the context of 'failed assertion' or 'assertion error'.

assertion

US //əˈsɝʃən// UK //ɐsˈɜːʃən// as·ser·tion

1 a strong claim (n.)
C1 Advanced Academic Formal

a statement where you say something is true, often with a lot of confidence.

a confident and forceful statement of fact or belief, often made without immediate proof.

Example

The lawyer made an assertion that his client was innocent of the crime.

Example

The author's central assertion is that economic stability depends more on psychological factors than on physical resources.

Usage

Often followed by a 'that' clause or the preposition 'of'.
- denial
- disavowal
2 insisting on a right (n.)
C1 Advanced Formal

the act of making sure your rights or power are recognized.

the act of asserting or insisting upon one's rights, authority, or influence.

Example

The small country's assertion of its independence surprised the world.

Example

The sudden assertion of executive power by the board led to a series of resignations among the senior management team.
- surrender
- abandonment

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3 programming check (n.)
C2 Proficiency Technical Computing

a command in a computer program that checks if a condition is true while the code is running.

a boolean expression at a specific point in a program which will be true unless there is a bug in the code.

Example

The programmer added an assertion to make sure the user's age was not a negative number.

Example

If the assertion fails during the execution of the test suite, the program will terminate immediately to prevent further data corruption.

Usage

Commonly used in the context of 'failed assertion' or 'assertion error'.
- check
- invariant
4 audit claim (n.)
C2 Proficiency Technical Formal Law

a claim made by a company about its money that an accountant checks.

a representation or declaration made by management regarding the recognition, measurement, and presentation of items in financial statements.

Example

The auditor checked the company's assertion that it owned all the equipment listed.

Example

The audit team must obtain sufficient evidence to support management's assertion regarding the valuation of intangible assets.
- representation

Origin

From Middle English assercioun, from Latin assertiō. By surface analysis, assert + -ion.