subcontractor

American  

[suhb-kon-trak-ter, suhb-kon-, suhb-kuhn-trak-ter] / sʌbˈkɒn træk tər, ˈsʌbˌkɒn-, ˌsʌb kənˈtræk tər /

noun

1. Law. a person who or business that contracts to provide some service or material necessary for the performance of another's contract.

2. a person or business firm contracted to do part of another's work.

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subcontractor British  

/ ˌsʌbkənˈtræktə /

noun

1. a person, company, etc, that enters into a subcontract, esp a firm that undertakes to complete part of another's contract

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Etymology

Origin of subcontractor

First recorded in 1835–45; sub- + contractor

Explanation

A subcontractor is someone who agrees to perform part of a larger job. If you've been hired to renovate a house but you're not an expert plumber, you could hire a subcontractor to install new pipes. If you were building a new house, you might hire a contractor to do the job. While the contractor would be responsible for the entire project, she might pay subcontractors to do specific tasks, like digging the foundation, installing windows, or wiring the new house for electricity. You would pay the contractor for the whole project, and she would pay the subcontractors for the work they performed.

Example Sentences

A complex array of financial levers exist to help everyone involved, from lenders and investors down to the lowliest subcontractor, to minimize their exposure should things fall apart.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 3, 2026

A quarrying and construction firm has been fined £110,000 after the death of a subcontractor.

From BBC • Mar. 13, 2026

“I don’t know who they’re a subcontractor with, but I don’t work with them because I have a conflict of interest and I fully recused myself,” she said.

From Salon • Nov. 15, 2025

Swedish media has also recently reported that some 40 workers from Turkey and Romania, working for a subcontractor, had not been paid.

From Barron's • Nov. 5, 2025

As company chairman Gwin Follis was a personal friend of Neylan’s—and the company itself had been Berkeley’s subcontractor on the MTA—arrangements were concluded rapidly.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik