n.
Pronunciation: ə - ' s ī z
Function: noun
Etymology: Middle English assise, from Anglo-French, session, legal action, from asseer, asseoir to seat, from Vulgar Latin *assed ē re, from Latin assid ē re to sit beside, assist in the office of a judge, from ad- + sed ē re to sit ― more at SIT
Date: 14th century
1 a : a judicial inquest b : an action to be decided by such an inquest, the writ for instituting it, or the verdict or finding rendered by the jury
2 a : the former periodical sessions of the superior courts in English counties for trial of civil and criminal cases ― usually used in plural b : the time or place of holding such a court, the court itself, or a session of it ― usually used in plural