Origin: Latin suffix -ment
Assignment has 7 different meanings across 1 category:
a duty that you are assigned to perform (especially in the armed forces)
"hazardous duty"
the instrument by which a claim or right or interest or property is transferred from one person to another
"The signed assignment of his life insurance policy officially transferred all benefits to his daughter upon his death."
the act of distributing something to designated places or persons
"the first task is the assignment of an address to each datum"
(law) a transfer of property by deed of conveyance
"The lawyer filed the assignment to officially transfer ownership of the family estate through the formal deed of conveyance."
an undertaking that you have been assigned to do (as by an instructor)
"I stayed late at the library just to finish my history assignment before tomorrow's deadline."
the act of putting a person into a non-elective position
"the appointment had to be approved by the whole committee"
The act of assigning; the allocation of a job or a set of tasks.
"The teacher's assignment was to interview three people about their experiences living in the city."
In plain English: An assignment is a task given to you by a teacher that you need to complete and turn in.
"The teacher gave us an assignment to write a short story."
Usage: Use "assignment" to refer to a specific task or piece of work given to someone, such as a homework problem or a project at the office. It describes the job itself rather than the action of giving it out, which is called an assignment in the sense of allocation but usually discussed as "assigning a task."
The word assignment entered English through the path of Middle English and then Old French. It originally referred to a specific task or duty that was given to someone.