as in substituting
to serve as a replacement usually for a time only
the weekend anchor is subbing for the station's main anchor all this week she subbed for middle school teachers in the district as needed
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Recent Examples of subbing
Nevada either didn’t recognize it or did and opted not to counter by subbing in a forward of its own, keeping its small lineup on the floor.
—
Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Jan. 2026
Boston made just one fourth-quarter sub before garbage time, subbing Brown in for Neemias Queta after building a 115-102 lead with six minutes remaining.
—Zack Cox, Boston Herald, 20 Dec. 2025
Making healthy swaps where possible (subbing a baked potato for French fries is one good example).
—Sarah Garone, Health, 8 Dec. 2025
Maybe that’s why companies like RadAI, which focus on unburdening the physician’s workflow rather than subbing in for their expertise, have been so successful.
—Alexis Kayser, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Dec. 2025
Angel’s makes a clever move by subbing the standard diced or shredded potato with plump, crisp tater tots, lending a welcome textural crunch against the soft filling.
—Brock Keeling, Oc Register, 6 Nov. 2025
Yeboah returned against the Galaxy, subbing on for the final 13 minutes.
—Andy Greder, Twin Cities, 26 Oct. 2025
The Midnight riff comes to us from Sam Ross, then of the legendary Milk & Honey, and turns the classic into a sour, bringing lemon juice to tart up the old Stinger profile but subbing bourbon for Cognac and Fernet Branca for the mint liqueur.
—Jeremy Repanich, Robb Report, 25 Oct. 2025
The Heat then extended its rotation to 10 players midway through the third quarter, subbing in Terry Rozier.
—Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 18 Oct. 2025
Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Jan. 2026
Boston made just one fourth-quarter sub before garbage time, subbing Brown in for Neemias Queta after building a 115-102 lead with six minutes remaining.
—Zack Cox, Boston Herald, 20 Dec. 2025
Making healthy swaps where possible (subbing a baked potato for French fries is one good example).
—Sarah Garone, Health, 8 Dec. 2025
Maybe that’s why companies like RadAI, which focus on unburdening the physician’s workflow rather than subbing in for their expertise, have been so successful.
—Alexis Kayser, MSNBC Newsweek, 4 Dec. 2025
Angel’s makes a clever move by subbing the standard diced or shredded potato with plump, crisp tater tots, lending a welcome textural crunch against the soft filling.
—Brock Keeling, Oc Register, 6 Nov. 2025
Yeboah returned against the Galaxy, subbing on for the final 13 minutes.
—Andy Greder, Twin Cities, 26 Oct. 2025
The Midnight riff comes to us from Sam Ross, then of the legendary Milk & Honey, and turns the classic into a sour, bringing lemon juice to tart up the old Stinger profile but subbing bourbon for Cognac and Fernet Branca for the mint liqueur.
—Jeremy Repanich, Robb Report, 25 Oct. 2025
The Heat then extended its rotation to 10 players midway through the third quarter, subbing in Terry Rozier.
—Anthony Chiang, Miami Herald, 18 Oct. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for subbing
substituting
Verb
-
Villalobos said the students used training guns with paintballs substituting for bullets.—
Steve Sadin,
Chicago Tribune,
6 Jan. 2026
-
Some took the trend and ran with it, substituting the actual skin care for a stick of butter.—
Kaleigh Werner,
Footwear News,
26 Dec. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Subbing.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/subbing. Accessed 10 Jan. 2026.
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