subalternate

[suhb-awl-ter-nit, -al-]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR subalternate ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

Botany. placed singly along an axis, but tending to become grouped oppositely.

Origin of subalternate

1400–50; late Middle English < Medieval Latin subalternātus (past participle of subalternāre to subordinate), equivalent to subaltern(us) subaltern + -ātus -ate¹

Related formssub·al·ter·na·tion

[suhb-awl-ter-ney-shuh n, -al-] /sʌbˌɔl tərˈneɪ ʃən, -ˌæl-/, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for subalternate

collateral, lower, sub, auxiliary, tributary, dependent, secondary, inferior, satellite, junior, low, subsidiary, accessory, subaltern, minor, subject, subnormal, adjuvant, ancillary, insignificant

Examples from the Web for subalternate

Historical Examples of subalternate

Branches irregular, divaricate nearly at rightangles, subalternate.
Narrative Of The Voyage Of H.M.S. Rattlesnake, Commanded By The Late Captain Owen Stanley, R.N., F.R.S. Etc. During The Years 1846-1850. Including Discoveries And Surveys In New Guinea, The Louisiade Archipelago, Etc. To Which Is Added The Account Of Mr. E.B. Kennedy's Expedition For The Exploration Of The Cape York Peninsula. By John Macgillivray, F.R.G.S. Naturalist To The Expedition. In Two Volumes. Volume 1.
John MacGillivray

British Dictionary definitions for subalternate

subalternate

adjective

(of leaves) having an arrangement intermediate between alternate and opposite

following in turn

of lesser quality or status

Derived Formssubalternation (sʌbˌɔːltəˈneɪʃən), noun

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