assize
UK[əˈsaɪz]US[əˈsaɪz]
n
A court session held periodically in each county of England, formerly with a jury, to try civil and criminal cases.
n
An ordinance or statute, especially one regulating weights and measures or the assaying of goods.
Morpheme Breakdown
as
size
as
to, at, near
size
a sitting, session, regulation
Etymology
The word 'assize' entered English via Anglo-Norman French in the legal context of the Middle Ages. It originates from the Latin verb 'assidere', meaning 'to sit beside' (from 'ad-' + 'sedere', to sit), which evolved in Vulgar Latin to signify a judicial sitting. The Old French feminine past participle 'assise' came to denote the session of a court or the decree issued from such a sitting. Thus, the literal concept of 'sitting down together' evolved into the formal, abstract meanings of a periodic court or a fixed ordinance established during such a session.
Analysis
Structure: as + size
as: From Latin 'ad-', meaning 'to, at, near'. A prefix indicating direction, addition, or intensification.
size: From Old French 'assise', meaning 'a sitting, session, regulation', itself from the feminine past participle of 'asseoir' (to seat, to set). In this context, it functions as the core noun element meaning 'a setting, a session'.
Examples
The judge traveled the circuit to preside over the assize.
The king issued an assize regulating the price and measure of bread.
Historical records from the 12th-century assizes provide insight into medieval English law.