subjectivity

American  

[suhb-jek-tiv-i-tee] / ˌsʌb dʒɛkˈtɪv ɪ ti /

noun

• subjectivities
  plural

1. the state or quality of being subjective; subjectiveness.

2. a subjective thought or idea.

3. intentness on internal thoughts.

4. internal reality.

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• nonsubjectivity
  noun

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• subjectivities
  plural

Etymology

Origin of subjectivity

First recorded in 1805–15; subjective + -ity; probably modeled on German Subjectivität

Explanation

Subjectivity refers to how someone’s judgment is shaped by personal opinions and feelings instead of outside influences. Subjectivity is partially responsible for why one person loves an abstract painting while another person hates it. Since a subject is a person, subjectivity refers to how a person's own uniqueness influences their perceptions. For example, if you have six sisters, that might influence how you view women or families — it's part of your subjectivity. Subjectivity is a form of bias and also individuality. Subjectivity is the opposite of objectivity, which is based purely on the facts and isn't personal. We expect judges to put aside their subjectivity and make decisions based on objectivity.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

subjectivity subjectivities

The court’s language frames the issue as biology vs. identity, objectivity vs. subjectivity, reality vs. fiction.

From Slate ● Jul. 7, 2026

"Bringing these two fields together can open up for a more holistic psychology, in which both neurological mechanisms and subjective experience are included. In this way, we can understand subjectivity in a more scientific manner."

From Science Daily ● Jul. 1, 2026

As a new joint rule-making by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. and Comptroller of the Currency explains, “supervising for reputation risk as a standalone risk adds substantial subjectivity to bank supervision and can be abused.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 8, 2026

But with clear and obvious guidelines, VAR tries to leave anything with some subjectivity on the field - as was the case with both these two goals.

From BBC ● Apr. 5, 2026

In Montaigne’s case this resulted in a peculiar emphasis on the subjectivity of what we know, its dependence on our personal experience.

From "The Invention of Science" by David Wootton

Furthermore, the album engages with Berlant's concept of gendered subjectivities, which emphasizes the fluid and performative nature of identity.

From Salon ● Apr. 11, 2024

They own up to their own subjectivities and doubts.

From New York Times ● Feb. 17, 2021

Both lovable and vaguely terrifying, Forky forces us to consider the post-Cartesian subjectivities of quasi-agent material assemblages apparently at work in the Toy Story universe.

From Slate ● Jul. 8, 2019

“Awareness that one’s self possesses multiple possible subjectivities or identities resists categorization,” he writes.

From Washington Post ● Oct. 18, 2018

Even the knowledge that we have of the two great conditions under which terrestrial subjectivities occur—circumscription and complexity—is only empirical.

From Mind and Motion and Monism by George John Romanes

Related Words

• individuality