An assignment is a task or piece of work given to someone to complete, usually by a teacher, boss, or other authority. When your teacher gives you a writing assignment, they're asking you to write an essay or story by a certain date. When a newspaper editor gives a reporter an assignment, they're sending them to cover a specific story.

Think of it like being chosen for a particular job: if you're assigned to water the class plants, that becomes your assignment.

Homework is probably the most familiar type of assignment for students. Each assignment typically has specific requirements and a deadline. A math assignment might ask you to solve twenty problems by Friday. A reading assignment might require you to finish three chapters by Monday. Some assignments are simple and quick, while others, like research projects, take weeks of work.

The word can also refer to a position someone is sent to work in. A doctor might receive an assignment at a hospital in another city, or a soldier might get an assignment to a base overseas. In this sense, an assignment is both a responsibility and a location where someone's skills are needed.