8 ADJ If someone is subject to a particular set of rules or laws, they have to obey those rules or laws. □ [+ to ] The tribunal is unique because Mr Jones is not subject to the normal police discipline code.
9 VERB If you subject someone to something unpleasant, you make them experience it. □ [V n + to ] …the man who had subjected her to four years of beatings and abuse.
10 N‑COUNT The people who live in or belong to a particular country, usually one ruled by a monarch, are the subjects of that monarch or country. □ Roughly half of them are British subjects.
11 PHRASE When someone involved in a conversation changes the subject , they start talking about something else, often because the previous subject was embarrassing. □ He tried to change the subject, but she wasn't to be put off.
12 PHRASE If an event will take place subject to a condition, it will take place only if that thing happens. □ They had agreed to a summit, subject to certain conditions. COLLOCATIONS subject NOUN
1
adjective + subject : controversial, difficult, sensitive, taboo
verb + subject : address, broach, discuss, raise
3
noun + subject : degree; arts, science
adjective + subject : academic, compulsory, core, vocational; favourite, specialist
verb + subject : research, study, teach SYNONYMS subject NOUN 1
topic: The main topic for discussion is political union.
question: But the whole question of aid is a tricky political one.
issue: Is it right for the Church to express a view on political issues?
matter: It was clear that she wanted to discuss some private matter.
sub|jec|tion /səbdʒe kʃ ə n/ N‑UNCOUNT [oft N to/of n] Subjection to someone involves being completely controlled by them. □ [+ to ] …their complete subjection to their captors. □ …the worst forms of economic subjection and drudgery.
sub|jec|tive /səbdʒe kt I v/ ADJ Something that is subjective is based on personal opinions and feelings rather than on facts. □ We know that taste in art is a subjective matter. □ The way they interpreted their past was highly subjective. ● sub|jec|tive|ly ADV □ Our preliminary results suggest that people do subjectively find the speech clearer. ● sub|jec|tiv|ity /sʌ bdʒəkt I v I ti/ N‑UNCOUNT □ They accused her of flippancy and subjectivity in her reporting of events in their country.
su b|ject mat|ter also subject-matter N‑UNCOUNT The subject matter of something such as a book, lecture, film, or painting is the thing that is being written about, discussed, or shown. □ Artists were given greater freedom in their choice of subject matter. □ Her subject matter is herself.
sub ju|di|ce /sʌ b dʒuː d I si/ also sub-judice ADJ [usu v-link ADJ ] When something is sub judice , it is the subject of a trial in a court of law. In Britain, this means that people are not allowed to discuss it in the media. [LEGAL ] □ He declined further comment on the grounds that the case was sub judice.
sub|ju|gate /sʌ bdʒʊge I t/ (subjugates , subjugating , subjugated )
1 VERB If someone subjugates a group of people, they take complete control of them, especially by defeating them in a war. [FORMAL ] □ [V n] People in the region are fiercely independent and resist all attempts to subjugate them. ● sub|ju|ga|tion /sʌ bdʒʊge I ʃ ə n/ N‑UNCOUNT □ [+ of ] …the brutal subjugation of native tribes.
2 VERB [usu passive] If your wishes or desires are subjugated to something, they are treated as less important than that thing. [FORMAL ] □ [be V -ed + to ] Health, common sense, and self-respect are subjugated to the cause of looking 'hot'. [Also be V -ed]
sub|junc|tive /səbdʒʌ ŋkt I v/ N‑SING In English, a clause expressing a wish or suggestion can be put in the subjunctive , or in the subjunctive mood, by using the base form of a verb or 'were'. Examples are 'He asked that they be removed' and 'I wish I were somewhere else'. These structures are formal. [TECHNICAL ]
sub|let /sʌ ble t/ (sublets , subletting ) The form sublet is used in the present tense and is the past tense and past participle of the verb. VERB If you sublet a building or part of a building, you allow someone to use it and you take rent from them, although you are not the owner and pay rent for it yourself. □ [V n] The company rented the building, occupied part and sublet the rest.
sub|li|mate /sʌ bl I me I t/ (sublimates , sublimating , sublimated ) VERB If you sublimate a strong desire or feeling, you express it in a way that is socially acceptable. [TECHNICAL , FORMAL ] □ [V n] He could try to sublimate the problem by writing, in detail, about it.
sub|lime /səbla I m/
1 ADJ [usu ADJ n] If you describe something as sublime , you mean that it has a wonderful quality that affects you deeply. [LITERARY , APPROVAL ] □ Sublime music floats on a scented summer breeze to the spot where you lie. ● N‑SING You can refer to sublime things as the sublime . □ She elevated every rare small success to the sublime. ● sub|lime|ly ADV [usu ADV adj] □ …the most sublimely beautiful of all living things. ● PHRASE If you describe something as going from the sublime to the ridiculous , you mean that it involves a change from something very good or serious to something silly or unimportant. □ At times the show veered from the sublime to the ridiculous.