meaning of assignment with sentence

Understanding Assignments

What this handout is about.

The first step in any successful college writing venture is reading the assignment. While this sounds like a simple task, it can be a tough one. This handout will help you unravel your assignment and begin to craft an effective response. Much of the following advice will involve translating typical assignment terms and practices into meaningful clues to the type of writing your instructor expects. See our short video for more tips.

Basic beginnings

Regardless of the assignment, department, or instructor, adopting these two habits will serve you well :

• Read the assignment carefully as soon as you receive it. Do not put this task off—reading the assignment at the beginning will save you time, stress, and problems later. An assignment can look pretty straightforward at first, particularly if the instructor has provided lots of information. That does not mean it will not take time and effort to complete; you may even have to learn a new skill to complete the assignment.
• Ask the instructor about anything you do not understand. Do not hesitate to approach your instructor. Instructors would prefer to set you straight before you hand the paper in. That’s also when you will find their feedback most useful.

Assignment formats

Many assignments follow a basic format. Assignments often begin with an overview of the topic, include a central verb or verbs that describe the task, and offer some additional suggestions, questions, or prompts to get you started.

An Overview of Some Kind

The instructor might set the stage with some general discussion of the subject of the assignment, introduce the topic, or remind you of something pertinent that you have discussed in class. For example:

“Throughout history, gerbils have played a key role in politics,” or “In the last few weeks of class, we have focused on the evening wear of the housefly …”

The Task of the Assignment

Pay attention; this part tells you what to do when you write the paper. Look for the key verb or verbs in the sentence. Words like analyze, summarize, or compare direct you to think about your topic in a certain way. Also pay attention to words such as how, what, when, where, and why; these words guide your attention toward specific information. (See the section in this handout titled “Key Terms” for more information.)

“Analyze the effect that gerbils had on the Russian Revolution”, or “Suggest an interpretation of housefly undergarments that differs from Darwin’s.”

Additional Material to Think about

Here you will find some questions to use as springboards as you begin to think about the topic. Instructors usually include these questions as suggestions rather than requirements. Do not feel compelled to answer every question unless the instructor asks you to do so. Pay attention to the order of the questions. Sometimes they suggest the thinking process your instructor imagines you will need to follow to begin thinking about the topic.

“You may wish to consider the differing views held by Communist gerbils vs. Monarchist gerbils, or Can there be such a thing as ‘the housefly garment industry’ or is it just a home-based craft?”

These are the instructor’s comments about writing expectations:

“Be concise”, “Write effectively”, or “Argue furiously.”

Technical Details

These instructions usually indicate format rules or guidelines.

“Your paper must be typed in Palatino font on gray paper and must not exceed 600 pages. It is due on the anniversary of Mao Tse-tung’s death.”

The assignment’s parts may not appear in exactly this order, and each part may be very long or really short. Nonetheless, being aware of this standard pattern can help you understand what your instructor wants you to do.

Interpreting the assignment

Ask yourself a few basic questions as you read and jot down the answers on the assignment sheet:

Why did your instructor ask you to do this particular task?

Who is your audience.

• What kind of evidence do you need to support your ideas?

What kind of writing style is acceptable?

• What are the absolute rules of the paper?

Try to look at the question from the point of view of the instructor. Recognize that your instructor has a reason for giving you this assignment and for giving it to you at a particular point in the semester. In every assignment, the instructor has a challenge for you. This challenge could be anything from demonstrating an ability to think clearly to demonstrating an ability to use the library. See the assignment not as a vague suggestion of what to do but as an opportunity to show that you can handle the course material as directed. Paper assignments give you more than a topic to discuss—they ask you to do something with the topic. Keep reminding yourself of that. Be careful to avoid the other extreme as well: do not read more into the assignment than what is there.

Of course, your instructor has given you an assignment so that they will be able to assess your understanding of the course material and give you an appropriate grade. But there is more to it than that. Your instructor has tried to design a learning experience of some kind. Your instructor wants you to think about something in a particular way for a particular reason. If you read the course description at the beginning of your syllabus, review the assigned readings, and consider the assignment itself, you may begin to see the plan, purpose, or approach to the subject matter that your instructor has created for you. If you still aren’t sure of the assignment’s goals, try asking the instructor. For help with this, see our handout on getting feedback .

Given your instructor’s efforts, it helps to answer the question: What is my purpose in completing this assignment? Is it to gather research from a variety of outside sources and present a coherent picture? Is it to take material I have been learning in class and apply it to a new situation? Is it to prove a point one way or another? Key words from the assignment can help you figure this out. Look for key terms in the form of active verbs that tell you what to do.

Key Terms: Finding Those Active Verbs

Here are some common key words and definitions to help you think about assignment terms:

Information words Ask you to demonstrate what you know about the subject, such as who, what, when, where, how, and why.

• define —give the subject’s meaning (according to someone or something). Sometimes you have to give more than one view on the subject’s meaning
• describe —provide details about the subject by answering question words (such as who, what, when, where, how, and why); you might also give details related to the five senses (what you see, hear, feel, taste, and smell)
• explain —give reasons why or examples of how something happened
• illustrate —give descriptive examples of the subject and show how each is connected with the subject
• summarize —briefly list the important ideas you learned about the subject
• trace —outline how something has changed or developed from an earlier time to its current form
• research —gather material from outside sources about the subject, often with the implication or requirement that you will analyze what you have found

Relation words Ask you to demonstrate how things are connected.

• compare —show how two or more things are similar (and, sometimes, different)
• contrast —show how two or more things are dissimilar
• apply—use details that you’ve been given to demonstrate how an idea, theory, or concept works in a particular situation
• cause —show how one event or series of events made something else happen
• relate —show or describe the connections between things

Interpretation words Ask you to defend ideas of your own about the subject. Do not see these words as requesting opinion alone (unless the assignment specifically says so), but as requiring opinion that is supported by concrete evidence. Remember examples, principles, definitions, or concepts from class or research and use them in your interpretation.

• assess —summarize your opinion of the subject and measure it against something
• prove, justify —give reasons or examples to demonstrate how or why something is the truth
• evaluate, respond —state your opinion of the subject as good, bad, or some combination of the two, with examples and reasons
• support —give reasons or evidence for something you believe (be sure to state clearly what it is that you believe)
• synthesize —put two or more things together that have not been put together in class or in your readings before; do not just summarize one and then the other and say that they are similar or different—you must provide a reason for putting them together that runs all the way through the paper
• analyze —determine how individual parts create or relate to the whole, figure out how something works, what it might mean, or why it is important
• argue —take a side and defend it with evidence against the other side

More Clues to Your Purpose As you read the assignment, think about what the teacher does in class:

• What kinds of textbooks or coursepack did your instructor choose for the course—ones that provide background information, explain theories or perspectives, or argue a point of view?
• In lecture, does your instructor ask your opinion, try to prove their point of view, or use keywords that show up again in the assignment?
• What kinds of assignments are typical in this discipline? Social science classes often expect more research. Humanities classes thrive on interpretation and analysis.
• How do the assignments, readings, and lectures work together in the course? Instructors spend time designing courses, sometimes even arguing with their peers about the most effective course materials. Figuring out the overall design to the course will help you understand what each assignment is meant to achieve.

Now, what about your reader? Most undergraduates think of their audience as the instructor. True, your instructor is a good person to keep in mind as you write. But for the purposes of a good paper, think of your audience as someone like your roommate: smart enough to understand a clear, logical argument, but not someone who already knows exactly what is going on in your particular paper. Remember, even if the instructor knows everything there is to know about your paper topic, they still have to read your paper and assess your understanding. In other words, teach the material to your reader.

Aiming a paper at your audience happens in two ways: you make decisions about the tone and the level of information you want to convey.

• Tone means the “voice” of your paper. Should you be chatty, formal, or objective? Usually you will find some happy medium—you do not want to alienate your reader by sounding condescending or superior, but you do not want to, um, like, totally wig on the man, you know? Eschew ostentatious erudition: some students think the way to sound academic is to use big words. Be careful—you can sound ridiculous, especially if you use the wrong big words.
• The level of information you use depends on who you think your audience is. If you imagine your audience as your instructor and they already know everything you have to say, you may find yourself leaving out key information that can cause your argument to be unconvincing and illogical. But you do not have to explain every single word or issue. If you are telling your roommate what happened on your favorite science fiction TV show last night, you do not say, “First a dark-haired white man of average height, wearing a suit and carrying a flashlight, walked into the room. Then a purple alien with fifteen arms and at least three eyes turned around. Then the man smiled slightly. In the background, you could hear a clock ticking. The room was fairly dark and had at least two windows that I saw.” You also do not say, “This guy found some aliens. The end.” Find some balance of useful details that support your main point.

You’ll find a much more detailed discussion of these concepts in our handout on audience .

The Grim Truth

With a few exceptions (including some lab and ethnography reports), you are probably being asked to make an argument. You must convince your audience. It is easy to forget this aim when you are researching and writing; as you become involved in your subject matter, you may become enmeshed in the details and focus on learning or simply telling the information you have found. You need to do more than just repeat what you have read. Your writing should have a point, and you should be able to say it in a sentence. Sometimes instructors call this sentence a “thesis” or a “claim.”

So, if your instructor tells you to write about some aspect of oral hygiene, you do not want to just list: “First, you brush your teeth with a soft brush and some peanut butter. Then, you floss with unwaxed, bologna-flavored string. Finally, gargle with bourbon.” Instead, you could say, “Of all the oral cleaning methods, sandblasting removes the most plaque. Therefore it should be recommended by the American Dental Association.” Or, “From an aesthetic perspective, moldy teeth can be quite charming. However, their joys are short-lived.”

Convincing the reader of your argument is the goal of academic writing. It doesn’t have to say “argument” anywhere in the assignment for you to need one. Look at the assignment and think about what kind of argument you could make about it instead of just seeing it as a checklist of information you have to present. For help with understanding the role of argument in academic writing, see our handout on argument .

What kind of evidence do you need?

There are many kinds of evidence, and what type of evidence will work for your assignment can depend on several factors–the discipline, the parameters of the assignment, and your instructor’s preference. Should you use statistics? Historical examples? Do you need to conduct your own experiment? Can you rely on personal experience? See our handout on evidence for suggestions on how to use evidence appropriately.

Make sure you are clear about this part of the assignment, because your use of evidence will be crucial in writing a successful paper. You are not just learning how to argue; you are learning how to argue with specific types of materials and ideas. Ask your instructor what counts as acceptable evidence. You can also ask a librarian for help. No matter what kind of evidence you use, be sure to cite it correctly—see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial .

You cannot always tell from the assignment just what sort of writing style your instructor expects. The instructor may be really laid back in class but still expect you to sound formal in writing. Or the instructor may be fairly formal in class and ask you to write a reflection paper where you need to use “I” and speak from your own experience.

Try to avoid false associations of a particular field with a style (“art historians like wacky creativity,” or “political scientists are boring and just give facts”) and look instead to the types of readings you have been given in class. No one expects you to write like Plato—just use the readings as a guide for what is standard or preferable to your instructor. When in doubt, ask your instructor about the level of formality they expect.

No matter what field you are writing for or what facts you are including, if you do not write so that your reader can understand your main idea, you have wasted your time. So make clarity your main goal. For specific help with style, see our handout on style .

Technical details about the assignment

The technical information you are given in an assignment always seems like the easy part. This section can actually give you lots of little hints about approaching the task. Find out if elements such as page length and citation format (see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial ) are negotiable. Some professors do not have strong preferences as long as you are consistent and fully answer the assignment. Some professors are very specific and will deduct big points for deviations.

Usually, the page length tells you something important: The instructor thinks the size of the paper is appropriate to the assignment’s parameters. In plain English, your instructor is telling you how many pages it should take for you to answer the question as fully as you are expected to. So if an assignment is two pages long, you cannot pad your paper with examples or reword your main idea several times. Hit your one point early, defend it with the clearest example, and finish quickly. If an assignment is ten pages long, you can be more complex in your main points and examples—and if you can only produce five pages for that assignment, you need to see someone for help—as soon as possible.

Tricks that don’t work

Your instructors are not fooled when you:

• spend more time on the cover page than the essay —graphics, cool binders, and cute titles are no replacement for a well-written paper.
• use huge fonts, wide margins, or extra spacing to pad the page length —these tricks are immediately obvious to the eye. Most instructors use the same word processor you do. They know what’s possible. Such tactics are especially damning when the instructor has a stack of 60 papers to grade and yours is the only one that low-flying airplane pilots could read.
• use a paper from another class that covered “sort of similar” material . Again, the instructor has a particular task for you to fulfill in the assignment that usually relates to course material and lectures. Your other paper may not cover this material, and turning in the same paper for more than one course may constitute an Honor Code violation . Ask the instructor—it can’t hurt.
• get all wacky and “creative” before you answer the question . Showing that you are able to think beyond the boundaries of a simple assignment can be good, but you must do what the assignment calls for first. Again, check with your instructor. A humorous tone can be refreshing for someone grading a stack of papers, but it will not get you a good grade if you have not fulfilled the task.

Critical reading of assignments leads to skills in other types of reading and writing. If you get good at figuring out what the real goals of assignments are, you are going to be better at understanding the goals of all of your classes and fields of study.

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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Definition of assign verb from the Oxford Advanced American Dictionary

Questions about grammar and vocabulary?

Find the answers with Practical English Usage online, your indispensable guide to problems in English.

• 3 [ usually passive ] assign somebody to somebody/something to send a person to work under the authority of someone or in a particular group I was assigned to B platoon.
• 4 to say that something has a particular value or function, or happens at a particular time or place assign something to something Assign a different color to each different type of information. assign something sth The painting cannot be assigned an exact date.
• 5 assign something to somebody ( law ) to say that your property or rights now belong to someone else The agreement assigns copyright to the publisher. She has assigned the lease to her daughter.

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Definition of 'assignment'

assignment in American English

Assignment in british english, examples of 'assignment' in a sentence assignment, related word partners assignment, trends of assignment.

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assignation

Definition of assignation

• appointment

Examples of assignation in a Sentence

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'assignation.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Dictionary Entries Near assignation

assigned risk

Cite this Entry

“Assignation.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary , Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/assignation. Accessed 16 May. 2024.

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Did Miss USA Noelia Voigt's resignation statement contain a hidden message?

Noelia V oigt 's decision to relinquish her Miss USA crown has sparked a flurry of online speculation after fans noticed a strange detail about her statement.

Voigt, who was awarded Miss USA in September 2023, announced in a statement Monday on Instagram that she has decided to resign from the title, writing, "In life, I strongly value the importance of making decisions that feel best for you and your mental health."

But in the comments of her post and elsewhere on social media, users noticed that taking the first letter in each sentence of her statement reveals the phrase "I AM SILENCED" — though this discounts the last three sentences, the first letters of which spell "HIP." It was not immediately clear whether the message was intentional.

"First letter of each sentence. 'I AM SILENCED' we hear you Noelia!" read one comment on Instagram.

In a viral TikTok , user AnnaNoel suggested Voigt was "trying to tell us something important" with the "secret code," speculating, "(I) absolutely do not think this is a coincidence. ... Her putting this in there was so someone would find out and someone would be able to listen closely."

Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.

USA TODAY has reached out to Voigt and the Miss USA Organization for comment.

Miss USA Noelia Voigt makes 'tough decision' to step down. Read her full statement.

The organization previously said in a statement to USA TODAY, "We respect and support former Miss USA Noelia Voigt’s decision to step down from her duties. The well-being of our titleholders is a top priority, and we understand her need to prioritize herself at this time."

The statement added, "The organization is currently reviewing plans for the transition of responsibilities to a successor and an announcement regarding the crowning of the new Miss USA will be coming soon."

Miss Teen USA resigns days after Miss USA Noelia Voigt steps down

Prior to Voigt's announcement, Miss USA social media director Claudia Michelle shared on Instagram Friday that she has resigned from her role. In a statement posted to social media, she wrote, "I have had the privilege of getting to work with Noelia closely and have unfortunately seen a decline in her mental health since we (first) met. I feel like her ability to share her story and her platform have been diminished."

"I feel the way current management speaks about their titleholders is unprofessional and inappropriate," she went on to write. "I disavow workplace toxicity and bullying of any kind."

In an Instagram story, Michelle shared Voigt's statement and highlighted the "I AM SILENCED" letters.

In response to Michelle's post, the Miss USA Organization said in a statement to USA TODAY, "We are troubled to hear the false accusations made by a former Miss USA employee. Miss USA is committed to fostering a safe, inclusive, and supportive environment, and we take these allegations seriously. Indeed, we have and will continue to prioritize the well-being of all individuals involved with Miss USA."

In the caption of her original Instagram post, Voigt acknowledged that her resignation "may come as a large shock to many," but added, "Never compromise your physical and mental well-being."

Contributing: Erin Jensen , USA TODAY

• Cambridge Dictionary +Plus

Meaning of assign in English

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assign verb [T] ( CHOOSE )

• Every available officer will be assigned to the investigation .
• The textbooks were assigned by the course director .
• Part of the group were assigned to clear land mines .
• Each trainee is assigned a mentor who will help them learn more about the job .
• We were assigned an interpreter for the duration of our stay .
• accommodate
• accommodate someone with something
• administration
• arm someone with something
• hand something back
• hand something down
• hand something in
• hand something out
• re-equipment
• reassignment

You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:

assign verb [T] ( SEND )

• She was assigned to the Paris office .
• All the team were assigned to Poland.
• advertisement
• employment agency
• equality, diversity and inclusion
• reinstatement
• relocation expenses
• testimonial

assign verb [T] ( COMPUTING )

• 3-D printing
• adaptive learning
• additive manufacturing
• hexadecimal
• hill climbing
• telerobotics
• word processing

assign verb [T] ( GIVE LEGALLY )

Phrasal verb, assign | american dictionary, assign | business english, examples of assign, translations of assign.

Get a quick, free translation!

Word of the Day

to try to persuade a customer who is already buying something to buy more, or to buy something more expensive

Searching out and tracking down: talking about finding or discovering things

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Separated by a Common Language in Singapore

Singapore English is famous for its sentences that end with the particle lah . But what does it mean when people use the particle one instead?

Singapore’s colorful creole is infamous for ending sentences with the untranslatable lah . Jock Wong, however, would like fellow linguists to pay attention to a more overlooked word in Singapore English, which he notes “is not found in Anglo English”— the word one .

Importantly, he warns that Singaporeans’ use of this innocuous particle could easily lead to serious miscommunications among speakers of different dialects of English.

Both common and “culturally significant,” the word one can be used in various ways, as Wong notes. For example, if two people need to use the shower at the same time, the person who wants to go first may promise that he will be quick by saying, “I very fast one .”

Wong distinguishes between the use of one in at least two different parts of speech.

Firstly, one has a grammatical noun form, seen in phrases such as “she buy one ,” meaning “the one she bought.” In the second case, the particle “follows a declarative sentence, either in sentence-final position or, frequently, followed by another particle or a tag.”

Wong reports that the particle form of one “occurs at very high frequency in everyday, informal speech,” appearing in sentences like “You have to be very careful one . Otherwise, you will lose one .” Based on these examples, he hypothesizes it’s used in ways that express opinion or speculation.

Yet “no overt distinction seems to be made between opinion and factual knowledge,” Wong observes. Indeed, “particle one can be used to make the proposition sound like a strong statement, as if the speaker is very confident about the validity of what he or she says.”

For example, a Singapore English speaker who wants to assert that nothing can be done about a situation is would simply say: “Like that means like that one .”

Wong observes that “speakers often exude absolute confidence even when saying things that seem mundane, trivial, or inconsequential,” thanks to the particle.

Such certainty extends to the use of one in rhetorical questions or questions where the speaker expects a definitive answer, such as “Last time here got one mad woman one , right?”

Based on this commonplace use of one , Wong argues that the particle ultimately reflects Singaporean cultural values that may differ from those of other English speakers.

Since one is associated with strong emphasis and overstatement, Wong suggests that its use “seems to reflect such a habit by which speakers speak definitively and exaggeratedly even in situations that may not seem to call for it” as a result of a cultural preference for certainty.

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“From an Anglo perspective, the use of particle one to influence a person’s way of thinking about something violates the cultural rule of acknowledging an individual’s point of view, and could therefore be interpreted as excessively intrusive, not unlike a speaker’s hectoring the addressee,” he writes. But

from a Singaporean perspective, [the] particle one is crucial in everyday speech because it connects fellow interlocutors by way of influencing each other’s thoughts, and it is essential for the cohesion of any informal speech exchange.

Some scholars think that one entered Singapore English through Chinese languages such as Mandarin, Hokkien , or Cantonese. Wong agrees with this view, and adds of Singapore English more generally, “[M]any of the cultural values it embodies have been carried over from the Chinese language.”

At the end of the day, “while the [Anglo and Singapore] communities are both said to speak ‘English,’ the patterns of thought embodied in the two cultural dialects of English can be significantly different.”

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Alex creasia joins navigation media group as lit manager, breaking news.

Inside Trump’s Hush Money Trial With The ElectionLine Podcast; JFK, RFK Jr & The State Of Mean + Fighting Iran’s Death Sentence Against Rapper Toomaj Salehi

By Dominic Patten , Ted Johnson

Editors note:  Running until the final general election results come in, the  Deadline ElectionLine podcast  spotlights the 2024 campaign and the blurred lines between politics and entertainment in modern America. Hosted by Deadline’s political editor Ted Johnson and executive editor Dominic Patten, the podcast features commentary and interviews with top lawmakers and entertainment figures. At the same time, you can follow all the news in the Biden & Trump rematch and more on the  ElectionLine  hub on Deadline.

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In an America watching one historic norm after another collapse in Donald Trump ’s ongoing hush money trial, and the greater debasing of political dialogue, Welch’s blistering words are perhaps needed more than ever – as you can hear on the Deadline ElectionLine podcast above.

“It was interesting to hear Judge Merchan say to the prosecution team ‘I understand that your client is a little difficult to control,’” says Sean Piccoli of some of the fallout from Stormy Daniels ’ testimony this week at the Trump trial. “However much prep work they did up front, as you say, she’s going to play by her own rules, and her brain just seemed to be on fire when she spoke.”

With a unique perspective on one of the biggest stories around right now, Piccoli joins us on the podcast this week straight from the Manhattan criminal courts where he has been covering the former president’s trial for Deadline since its April 15 start. With not even still photographs now allowed in the court room, Piccili has an up close seat at American history in the making.

Also, Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power ‘s Nazanin Boniadi  talks to us about the global fight she and other are waging against Iran’s pledg e to execute rapper Toomaj Salehi and imprison other artists who have protested against the Islamic Republic’s regime.

Then there is Congressman Mike Collins.

Just hours after it was revealed this week that Robert Kennedy Jr. suffered over a decade ago from a parasite eating a portion of his brain, the Georgia Republican decided a good way to get some attention would be to not only mock the independent presidential candidate’s health issues, but also the public assassination of his uncle President John F. Kennedy in Dallas in 1963.

Regardless of what you may think of JFK, RFK Jr, or any member of the Kennedy family, just because Collins believes in that P.T. Barnum adage that there is “no such thing as bad publicity,” doesn’t change the fact that his remarks are vile.

You either die a Kennedy with a hole in the brain or live long enough to become a Kennedy with a hole in the brain. — Rep. Mike Collins (@RepMikeCollins) May 8, 2024

As anyone who has ever attended a performance of Hamilton can tell you, men and women in public life in America have literally and figuratively been taking potshots at each other even before the Declaration of Independence was written. That’s nothing new from 1776 up to the bitter divisions of the Civil War. But, without trying to project era egotism, it sure feels like from Trump to Majorie Taylor Greene to the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol and to Mike Collins that there is a coarsening of our culture.

Collins’ posting is a sure sign of that coarsening.

Yet, while the cruel comments spurred some outrage, by day’s end it was largely forgotten. Add to that, as we discuss on the podcast Friday, the fact that no major member of the GOP called Collins out for his rancor, and you have the sad state today of discourse in this country.

Still, with shame no longer a force in public life, Collins’ tweet is indicative of a new state of mean, where crassness is mistaken for toughness, and where any pushback is met with complaint that free speech is under attack, and the suggestion of apology is viewed as a signal of weakness. The goal is attention — the more outrage the better and no depth is too low.

Almost a generation ago, incumbent Republican senator George Allen referred to a Democratic operative in the crowd as “macaca,” a reference to his race. Allen apologized but lost his race for reelection.

Contrast that to now, such comments are all but overlooked. While not the only cause of such a debasement of the body politic, the rise of Trump has exacerbated and to a large degree, normalized the problem. For example, Trump repeatedly referred to his former transportation secretary Elaine Chow as “coco Chow.” While the comments got some pushback, it didn’t cost the once and present Republican nominee the important support of Chow’s husband, current Senate Minority leader Mitch McConnell. 

Collins’ attack on the Kennedys is another indication of where discourse has gone in this country — or, as Joseph N. Welch said 70 years ago: “Have you no sense of decency, sir?”

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