Adjacent Words

sub- definitions

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Merriam Webster's

prefix Etymology: Middle English, from Latin, under, below, secretly, from below, near, from sub under, close to — more at up 1. under ; beneath ; below <subsoil> <subaqueous> 2. a. subordinate ; secondary ; next lower than or inferior to <substation> <subeditor> b. subordinate portion of ; subdivision of <subcommittee> <subspecies> c. with repetition (as of a process) so as to form, stress, or deal with subordinate parts or relations <sublet> <subcontract> 3. less than completely, perfectly, or normally ; somewhat <subacute> <subclinical> 4. a. almost ; nearly <suberect> b. falling nearly in the category of and often adjoining ; bordering on <subarctic>

Oxford Reference Dictionary

prefix (also suc- before c, suf- before f, sug- before g, sup- before p, sur- before r, sus- before c, p, t) 1 at or to or from a lower position (subordinate; submerge; subtract; subsoil). 2 secondary or inferior in rank or position (subclass; subcommittee; sub-lieutenant; subtotal). 3 somewhat, nearly; more or less (subacid; subarctic; subaquatic). 4 (forming verbs) denoting secondary action (subdivide; sublet). 5 denoting support (subvention). 6 Chem. (of a salt) basic (subacetate). Etymology: from or after L sub- f. sub under, close to, towards

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Sub- Sub- [L. sub under, below; akin to Gr. ?, Skr. upa to, on, under, over. Cf. Hypo-, Super-.] 1. A prefix signifying under, below, beneath, and hence often, in an inferior position or degree, in an imperfect or partial state, as in subscribe, substruct, subserve, subject, subordinate, subacid, subastringent, subgranular, suborn. Sub- in Latin compounds often becomes sum- before m, sur before r, and regularly becomes suc-, suf-, sug-, and sup- before c, f, g, and p respectively. Before c, p, and t it sometimes takes form sus- (by the dropping of b from a collateral form, subs-). 2. (Chem.) A prefix denoting that the ingredient (of a compound) signified by the term to which it is prefixed,is present in only a small proportion, or less than the normal amount; as, subsulphide, suboxide, etc. Prefixed to the name of a salt it is equivalent to basic; as, subacetate or basic acetate. [Obsoles.]

Collin's Cobuild Dictionary

1. Sub- is used at the beginning of words that have 'under' as part of their meaning. The waters were rising about the rock and would soon submerge it. ...a nuclear-powered submarine. PREFIX 2. Sub- is added to the beginning of nouns in order to form other nouns that refer to things that are part of a larger thing. ...a subcommittee on family values and individual rights. ...the subdivision of farms into smallholdings. PREFIX 3. Sub- is added to the beginning of adjectives in order to form other adjectives that describe someone or something as inferior, for example inferior to normal people or to normal things. The cold has made already substandard living conditions even worse. PREFIX