subtropical

[ suhb-trop-i-kuhl ]

adjective

1. bordering on the tropics; nearly tropical.
2. pertaining to or occurring in a region between tropical and temperate; subtorrid; semitropical.

noun

1. a subtropical plant.

subtropical

/ sŭb-trŏp′ĭ-kəl /

1. Relating to the regions of the Earth bordering on the tropics, just north of the Tropic of Cancer or just south of the Tropic of Capricorn. Subtropical regions are the warmest parts of the two Temperate Zones.

Word History and Origins

Origin of subtropical¹

First recorded in 1835–45; sub- + tropical

Example Sentences

It is usually found in tropical and subtropical regions.

From Los Angeles Times

But Los Angeles County public health officials are now warning about the “unprecedented” local transmission of dengue, which is commonly found in tropical and subtropical climates.

From Los Angeles Times

The reason that the North American monsoon does not reach coastal California is the presence of the North Pacific High, which is a part of the subtropical ridge that typically sits northeast of Hawaii.

From Los Angeles Times

Lead author Annika Vaksmaa of NIOZ: "Large amounts of plastics end up in subtropical gyres, ring-shaped currents in oceans in which seawater is almost stationary. That means once the plastic has been carried there, it gets trapped there. Some 80 million kilograms of floating plastic have already accumulated in the North Pacific Subtropical Gyre in the Pacific Ocean alone, which is only one of the six large gyres worldwide."

From Science Daily

Hundreds of millions of people get malaria every year, and an estimated 2.7 million die from it, mostly in tropical and subtropical regions.

From Salon