-
Trending Now:
More Trending:
- admiral's mast calumny kakistocracy bona fide surrogate mother
- ALL
Definition of subordinate
1 : placed in or occupying a lower class, rank, or position : inferior a subordinate officer
2 : submissive to or controlled by authority
3a : of, relating to, or constituting a clause that functions as a noun, adjective, or adverbb : subordinating
subordinately
adverbsubordinateness
nounExplore M-W
Examples of subordinate in a Sentence
About two-thirds of the way through, this nonsense comes to life for fifteen minutes when the point of view shifts to that of a subordinate character, an aging thug (well played by Laurence Fishburne) who is employed by the casino to spot card counters. —Richard Alleva, Commonweal, May 9, 2008
A reporter's right to protect a source is a subordinate matter that obfuscates the more important issue of violating journalistic integrity and responsibility when one becomes an agent, if not a pawn, of a mean-spirited and vindictive retaliation scheme. —Jon Duffey, Editor & Publisher, 13 Oct. 2003
She was thirty-three, furiously frustrated with her subordinate role in the studio—attending to the model's hair, makeup, and clothes—and chronically dissatisfied with her own pictures, which represented a different kind of woman's work. —Judith Thurman, New Yorker, 13 Oct. 2003
his contention is that environment plays a subordinate role to heredity in determining what we become
Recent Examples of subordinate from the Web
-
However, there are only three subordinate departments within the Department of Defense: the Department of the Army, the Department of the Navy, and the Department of the Air Force.
-
Democrats drilled him on what legal basis Sessions, as a subordinate to the executive, was refusing to answer, but Sessions held the cards.
-
First, in two 2016 Supreme Court cases, Puerto Rico's subordinate sovereignty became clear.
-
Along with other developments in the Trump administration this week, the Comey testimony offers a striking picture of boss and subordinate relations.
-
In 2009, Zwicharoski was told by a subordinate that some human remains were missing.
-
Under Iran’s system, the president is subordinate only to the supreme leader, who is chosen by a clerical panel and has the ultimate say over all matters of state.
-
Under Iran’s system, the president is subordinate only to the supreme leader, who is chosen by a clerical panel and has the ultimate say over all matters of state.
-
Charlton wrote a 25-page letter to Horne's criminal-division chief, Andrew Pacheco, who earlier had been Charlton's subordinate in the U.S. Attorney’s Office.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'subordinate'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of subordinate
Middle English subordinat, from Medieval Latin subordinatus, past participle of subordinare to subordinate, from Latin sub- + ordinare to order — more at ordain
Definition of subordinate
: one who stands in order or rank below another : one that is subordinate
Examples of subordinate in a Sentence
Case in point: the dismissal of advertising chief Julie Roehm, accused of having an affair with a subordinate (also fired) and taking freebies from an advertising agency (also fired) in violation of company policies. —Bill Saporito, Time, 12 Nov. 2007
He ran an extremely unhappy headquarters. He tended to berate subordinates, frequently shouting and cursing at them. —Thomas E. Ricks, Fiasco, 2006
She also found it impossible to give negative feedback. As a consequence, her work and that of her subordinates started to suffer, and she was missing deadlines. —Steven Berglas, Harvard Business Review, June 2002
She leaves the day-to-day running of the firm to her subordinates.
subordinates do most of the actual creation of the famous designer's clothing designs
Recent Examples of subordinate from the Web
-
Snow last year asked the US Attorney's Office to file the criminal contempt charges against Arpaio and several subordinates.
-
Agendas sent to Cabinet secretaries - including John Kerry at the State Department and Ashton Carter at the Pentagon - arrived in envelopes that subordinates were not supposed to open.
-
Obviously, the president cannot have less authority to exercise his power than his subordinates do.
-
Coats, the Post reported, later told subordinates that the president had asked him to intercede with Comey to end the Flynn investigation.
-
The 21-page document blames not only Torres, who resigned her $169,000-a-year post under pressure on April 24, but also her $123,000-a-year subordinate, Athanasula Tanasi—who dealt extensively with Pita and handled its bills and invoices.
-
One of his subordinates called for that portion of the discussion stricken from internal memos and circulation of a transcript limited to prevent sensitive details from being further distributed, the newspaper said.
-
But a new study published by the Academy of Management Journal finds that in reality, a boss' explosive behavior or habit of ridiculing subordinates in front of others actually makes them feel pretty awful, too.
-
Authorities also interviewed Garrett Houghton, whom documents identify as Folsom’s subordinate.
These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'subordinate'. Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Origin and Etymology of subordinate
see 1subordinate
Definition of subordinate
subordinated
;subordinating
transitive verb
1 : to make subject or subservient
2 : to treat as of less value or importance stylist … whose crystalline prose subordinates content to form — Susan Heath
Examples of subordinate in a Sentence
Clinton administration Trade Representative Mickey Kantor declared: “The days when we could afford to subordinate our economic interests to foreign policy or defense concerns are long past.” —Lawrence F. Kaplan, New Republic, 18 Mar. 2002
The real reason, though, is that art survives life, and this unpalatable realization lies behind the lumpen desire to subordinate the former to the latter. The finite always mistakes the permanent for the infinite and nurtures designs upon it. —Joseph Brodsky, Times Literary Supplement, 26 Oct. 1990
it is one of the lessons of history that more powerful civilizations often subordinate weaker ones
Origin and Etymology of subordinate
Medieval Latin subordinatus —see 1subordinate
SUBORDINATE Defined for English Language Learners
subordinate
playDefinition of subordinate for English Language Learners
-
: in a position of less power or authority than someone else
-
: less important than someone or something else
subordinate
playDefinition of subordinate for English Language Learners
-
: someone who has less power or authority than someone else : someone who is subordinate to someone else
subordinate
playDefinition of subordinate for English Language Learners
-
: to think of or treat (someone or something) as less important than someone or something else
SUBORDINATE Defined for Kids
Definition of subordinate for Students
: someone who has less power or authority than someone else
Definition of subordinate for Students
subordinated
;subordinating
: to treat as inferior in rank or importance
Law Dictionary
Legal Definition of subordinate
1 : placed in or occupying a lower rank, class, or position
2 : submissive to or controlled by authority
Legal Definition of subordinate
subordinated
subordinating
: to assign lower priority to (as a debt or creditor) : postpone satisfaction of until after satisfaction of another the equitable assignee will be subordinated to the rights of the assignor's trustee in bankruptcy — J. D. Calamari and J. M. Perillo
Learn More about subordinate
-
Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for subordinate Spanish Central: Translation of subordinate Nglish: Translation of subordinate for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of subordinate for Arabic speakers
Seen and Heard
What made you want to look up subordinate? Please tell us where you read or heard it (including the quote, if possible).
Writing? Check your grammar now!