• Assigns values to a variable or list of variables
• Will not assign values to a table (use ASSIGN-TABLE instead)
• The output of the function is the value given to the first (perhaps only) variable
• The output of the function is suppressed when DISPLAY is set to off. This is useful to avoid filling the history screen with large amounts of output
• DEFINE and ASSIGN are synonymous

Examples: (one-value to one-variable)
  (DEFINE BamHI AS "GGATCC")
:: "GGATCC"

  (ASSIGN ortholog = (ORTHOLOG-OF all4312 IN S6803))
::

Examples: (list or multiple-values to list-variable)
  (DEFINE available-Anabaena AS (A7120 Avar))
:: (#$anabaena_pcc7120 #$anabaena_variabilis_atcc29413)

  (ASSIGN BamHI-sites AS (PATTERN-MATCH-ALL BamHI (SEQUENCE-OF A7120.chromosome))
::

  (DEFINE cb-core = (COMMON-ORTHOLOGS-OF *loaded-organisms*) DISPLAY off)
:: (output supressed)

Examples: (list of values to multiple variables)
  (ASSIGN (start-codon stop-codon) = ("GTG" "TAA"))
:: "GTG"
  (ASSIGN (begin end dir) (GET-ELEMENTS (FROM TO DIRECTION) FROM gene)
::

Note: When multiple variables are assigned, only the last is shown, but all assignments actually take place.