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subject
[ noun adjective suhb-jikt; verb suhb-jekt ]
noun
- that which forms a basic matter of thought, discussion, investigation, etc.:
a subject of conversation.
- a branch of knowledge as a course of study:
He studied four subjects in his first year at college.
- a motive, cause, or ground:
a subject for complaint.
- the theme of a sermon, book, story, etc.
- the principal melodic motif or phrase in a musical composition, especially in a fugue.
- an object, scene, incident, etc., chosen by an artist for representation, or as represented in art.
- a person who is under the dominion or rule of a sovereign.
- a person who owes allegiance to a government and lives under its protection:
Swedish subjects are guaranteed access to equal education in childhood.
- Grammar. (in many languages, such as English) one of the two main parts of a sentence, containing a noun or pronoun and all of its modifiers, which generally refers to the one performing an action, experiencing a condition, or being in a state expressed by a verb: for example, Our best employee in Our best employee gave notice, or He in He is still here. Compare predicate ( def 1 ).
- a person or thing that undergoes or may undergo some action:
As a dissenter, he found himself the subject of the group's animosity.
- a person or thing under the control or influence of another.
- a person as an object of medical, surgical, or psychological treatment or experiment.
- a cadaver used for dissection.
- Logic. that term of a proposition concerning which the predicate is affirmed or denied.
- Philosophy.
- that which thinks, feels, perceives, intends, etc., as contrasted with the objects of thought, feeling, etc.
- the self or ego.
- Metaphysics. that in which qualities or attributes inhere; substance.
adjective
- being under domination, control, or influence (often followed by to ).
Synonyms: subservient, subordinate
- being under dominion, rule, or authority, as of a sovereign, state, or some governing power; owing allegiance or obedience (often followed by to ).
- open or exposed (usually followed by to ):
subject to ridicule.
- being dependent or conditional upon something (usually followed by to ):
His consent is subject to your approval.
Synonyms: contingent
- being under the necessity of undergoing something (usually followed by to ):
All beings are subject to death.
- liable; prone (usually followed by to ):
subject to headaches.
verb (used with object)
- to bring under domination, control, or influence (usually followed by to ).
- to bring under dominion, rule, or authority, as of a conqueror or a governing power (usually followed by to ).
- to cause to undergo the action of something specified; expose (usually followed by to ):
to subject metal to intense heat.
- to make liable or vulnerable; lay open; expose (usually followed by to ):
to subject oneself to ridicule.
- Obsolete. to place beneath something; make subjacent.
subject
noun
- the predominant theme or topic, as of a book, discussion, etc
- ( in combination )
subject-heading
- any branch of learning considered as a course of study
- grammar logic a word, phrase, or formal expression about which something is predicated or stated in a sentence; for example, the cat in the sentence The cat catches mice
- a person or thing that undergoes experiment, analysis, treatment, etc
- a person who lives under the rule of a monarch, government, etc
- an object, figure, scene, etc, as selected by an artist or photographer for representation
- philosophy
- that which thinks or feels as opposed to the object of thinking and feeling; the self or the mind
- a substance as opposed to its attributes
- Also calledtheme music a melodic or thematic phrase used as the principal motif of a fugue, the basis from which the musical material is derived in a sonata-form movement, or the recurrent figure in a rondo
- logic
- the term of a categorial statement of which something is predicated
- the reference or denotation of the subject term of a statement. The subject of John is tall is not the name John, but John himself
- an originating motive
- change the subjectto select a new topic of conversation
adjective
- being under the power or sovereignty of a ruler, government, etc
subject peoples
- showing a tendency (towards)
a child subject to indiscipline
- exposed or vulnerable
subject to ribaldry
- conditional upon
the results are subject to correction
adverb
- subject topreposition under the condition that
we accept, subject to her agreement
verb
- foll by to to cause to undergo the application (of)
they subjected him to torture
- often passivefoll byto to expose or render vulnerable or liable (to some experience)
he was subjected to great danger
- foll by to to bring under the control or authority (of)
to subject a soldier to discipline
- rare.to subdue or subjugate
- rare.to present for consideration; submit
- obsolete.to place below
subject
- A part of every sentence. The subject tells what the sentence is about; it contains the main noun or noun phrase : “The car crashed into the railing”; “ Judy and two of her friends were elected to the National Honor Society.” In some cases the subject is implied: you is the implied subject in “Get me some orange juice.” ( Compare predicate .)
Derived Forms
- subˌjectaˈbility, noun
- ˈsubject-ˌlike, adjective
- subˈjectable, adjective
- ˈsubjectless, adjective
Other Words From
- sub·ject·a·ble adjective
- sub·ject·a·bil·i·ty [s, uh, b-jek-t, uh, -, bil, -i-tee], noun
- sub·ject·less adjective
- sub·ject·like adjective
- non·sub·ject noun adjective
- pre·sub·ject verb (used with object)
- re·sub·ject verb (used with object)
- un·sub·ject adjective
Word History and Origins
Origin of subject1
Word History and Origins
Origin of subject1
Idioms and Phrases
In addition to the idiom beginning with subject , also see change the subject .Synonym Study
Example Sentences
Still, all of the company’s customers and others using this pricing mechanism were subject to such volatility.
After I folded the Duo, sometimes I ended up with the camera facing toward me, not my subject, and the Duo remained in selfie mode.
How and when that collapse might occur is the subject of a five-year international collaborative research effort.
Kelvin Barrios could be the subject of yet another San Diego ethics violation.
This article was co-published with The Atlantic and is not subject to our Creative Commons license.
Throughout the fifties, in city after city, fluoridation became the subject of fierce debate.
This is a provocative subject that is ready-made for the classroom.
Imam Bheel, as locals call him, was added to a list of worldwide traffickers subject to U.S. sanctions in 2009.
He allows the subject to float over to Hitchcock with a calm directness that I admire.
No one knows what they're about but Boba Fett is rumored to be the subject of one.
No man should regard the subject of religion as decided for him until he has read The Golden Bough.
But a little earlier still, to be an Infidel was to be an outlaw, subject to the penalty of death.
Her manner amazed him; it was so unlike the aspect of fair interpretation, with which she usually discussed a dubious subject.
Her "St. Agnes" is an interesting rendering of a well-worn subject.
No trait is better marked in the normal child than the impulse to subject others to his own disciplinary system.
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Related Words
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
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