from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Assent \As*sent"\, n. [OE. assent, fr. assentir. See {Assent},
v.]
The act of assenting; the act of the mind in admitting or
agreeing to anything; concurrence with approval; consent;
agreement; acquiescence.
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Faith is the assent to any proposition, on the credit
of the proposer. --Locke.
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The assent, if not the approbation, of the prince.
--Prescott.
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Too many people read this ribaldry with assent and
admiration. --Macaulay.
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{Royal assent}, in England, the assent of the sovereign to a
bill which has passed both houses of Parliament, after
which it becomes law.
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Syn: Concurrence; acquiescence; approval; accord.
Usage: {Assent}, {Consent}. Assent is an act of the
understanding, consent of the will or feelings. We
assent to the views of others when our minds come to
the same conclusion with theirs as to what is true,
right, or admissible. We consent when there is such a
concurrence of our will with their desires and wishes
that we decide to comply with their requests. The king
of England gives his assent, not his consent, to acts
of Parliament, because, in theory at least, he is not
governed by personal feelings or choice, but by a
deliberate, judgment as to the common good. We also
use assent in cases where a proposal is made which
involves but little interest or feeling. A lady may
assent to a gentleman's opening the window; but if he
offers himself in marriage, he must wait for her
consent.
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