subjectivity

noun

sub·​jec·​tiv·​i·​ty (ˌ)səb-ˌjek-ˈti-və-tē 

: the quality, state, or nature of being subjective

Any attempt to link landscapes and music together can suffer from some measure of subjectivity.

—David J. Keeling

He thinks that scientists and philosophers have unjustly neglected the subjectivity of conscious experience and that this has made it harder for them to explain some of the workings of the mind.

—Anthony Gottlieb

Examples of subjectivity in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The subjectivity that Raphael made visible, however fleetingly, Mary Cassatt made central to her art. — Carmen Rosenberg-Miller, Artforum, 6 Aug. 2026

Soccer authorities expected more cameras, replay angles and tracking data to mitigate referee error, limit subjectivity and strengthen perceptions of fairness. — Pooya Tabesh, The Conversation, 30 July 2026

The open letter addressed the thorny question of the subjectivity of judgments of quality. — Melanie Goodfellow, Deadline, 27 July 2026

The subjectivity of the original tale thus becomes a kind of psychic landscape in Visconti’s film. — Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 24 July 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1803, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for subjectivity

• absorptivity
• affectivity
• collectivity
• conductivity
• connectivity
• corrosivity
• creativity
• diffusivity
• directivity
• effectivity
• emissivity
• exclusivity

Medical Definition

subjectivity

noun

sub·​jec·​tiv·​i·​ty ˌsəb-jek-ˈtiv-ət-ē 

plural subjectivities

1

: subjective character, quality, state, or nature

2

: the personal qualities of an investigator that affect the outcome of scientific or medical research (as by unconsciously communicating a bias to the subject of the experiment)