subdue
Americanverb (used with object)
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to conquer and bring into subjection.
Rome subdued Gaul.
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to overpower by superior force; overcome.
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to bring under mental or emotional control, as by persuasion or intimidation; render submissive.
- Synonyms:
- suppress, discipline, break, tame
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to repress (feelings, impulses, etc.).
- Synonyms:
- suppress
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to bring (land) under cultivation.
to subdue the wilderness.
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to reduce the intensity, force, or vividness of (sound, light, color, etc.); tone down; soften.
- Antonyms:
- intensify
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to allay (inflammation, infection, etc.).
verb
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to establish ascendancy over by force
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to overcome and bring under control, as by intimidation or persuasion
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to hold in check or repress (feelings, emotions, etc)
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to render less intense or less conspicuous
Synonym Usage
See defeat.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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subduablenessnoun
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subdualnoun
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subduernoun
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presubdueverb (used with object)
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subduableadjective
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unsubduableadjective
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subduablyadverb
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subduinglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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subduesimple
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subduessimple
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have subduedperfect
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has subduedperfect
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am subduingprogressive
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are subduingprogressive
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is subduingprogressive
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have been subduingperfect progressive
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has been subduingperfect progressive
Past
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subduedsimple
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had subduedperfect
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was subduingprogressive
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were subduingprogressive
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had been subduingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of subdue
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English so(b)duen, so(b)dewen, from unattested Anglo-French soduer “to overcome,” from Old French soduire “to deceive, seduce,” from Latin subdūcere “to withdraw”; meaning in English (and Anglo-French ) from Latin subdere “to place beneath, subdue”; see subduct
Explanation
To subdue is to hold back, put down, or defeat. A Doberman can be subdued with a bone, but subduing a yapping toy poodle can be a mail carrier's greatest daily challenge. You can use the verb subdue in ways ranging from subtle to very forceful. If someone is angry, you might subdue him with kind words that overcome his anger. If someone is coming at you with a giant karate chop, you may be able to subdue her with a secret weapon — a knee-snap–heel-kick-floor-drop. Sub-, as in submarine means "below" and subdue means to bring low — to keep down literally or to calm down emotionally.
Vocabulary lists containing subdue
Sojourner Truth's "Ain't I A Woman?" (1863)
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100 SAT words Beginning with "S"
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"Common Sense," Vocabulary from the pamphlet
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
Seven years later, President Thomas Jefferson sent the fleet—three frigates and a schooner—to subdue pirates disrupting shipping along North Africa’s Barbary Coast.
From Barron's ● Jun. 5, 2026
Assassination attempts can also warp how journalists cover a president’s opposition, and subdue how that opposition behaves.
From Slate ● Apr. 26, 2026
A public inquiry into the attacks has heard how Sanders pushed for a charge against Calocane to subdue some of the reporting, due to media laws around court reporting.
From BBC ● Mar. 18, 2026
According to the incident report, an unspecified number of people tried to subdue him and eventually let him go “in hope that he would leave.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 26, 2026
The intruder was weak from his ordeals and winded from the climb, and it took little effort to subdue him.
From "The Long-Lost Home" by Maryrose Wood
In person, Huang subdues his ironic braggadocio with polite eye contact and rolling belly laughs at his own jokes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 1, 2026
We don’t yet know how MiniFlayer subdues its helper, or whether MindFlayer has evolved countermeasures.
From Salon ● Nov. 9, 2023
He cited Philippine national hero Jose Rizal’s description of justice “as the foremost virtue of the civilizing races. It subdues the barbarous nations while injustice arouses the weakest.”
From Seattle Times ● Mar. 2, 2023
Nathan, a rich Jewish trader, is wooed by Salah ad-Din to shore up the city’s treasury after the sultan subdues the Christian crusaders, sparing one, played with amusing energy by Drew Kopas.
From Washington Post ● Mar. 24, 2022
It comes upon me with a power that subdues my spirit, yet fills it with ineffable peace.
From The Home Mission by Arthur, T. S. (Timothy Shay)
Yael Selfin, chief economist at KPMG, said the "subdued" wage growth made it more likely that the Bank of England would keep interest rates on hold at 3.75% when it meets next week.
From BBC ● Jul. 21, 2026
A solid trading debut by SBI Funds Management could provide a much-needed lift to India’s relatively subdued IPO market, indicating robust investor interest in big-name listings.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 21, 2026
This rare fossil, with its embedded tooth preserved for millions of years, provides another valuable piece of evidence about how the iconic predator may have hunted and subdued its prey.
From Science Daily ● Jul. 14, 2026
Mr. Argue applies the same brilliant synthesis of influences and mastery of several musical idioms that has distinguished his own magnificent 18-piece Secret Society ensemble, but here carrying a less urgent, more subdued feel.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 11, 2026
Zooey put out his tongue and gave a subdued, modified Bronx cheer.
From "Franny and Zooey" by J. D. Salinger
Sun Tzu, perhaps the most famous military strategist in human history, wrote in the fifth century B.C. that subduing an enemy without fighting was the height of military skill.
From Slate ● Apr. 13, 2026
Young was attempting to be “playful,” according to court records, but the other agent responded by disarming and physically subduing Young, who was ordered to surrender his gun and soon retired.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 4, 2025
Gigantic or tiny, fearsome or cuddly, stealing from the rich or subduing gangsters, they scamper through the film with lolling-tongued delight and discernible personalities.
From New York Times ● Mar. 28, 2024
That facts such as these weren’t obvious from the beginning only shows the power of myth in subduing skeptical thinking.
From Salon ● Nov. 4, 2023
"School is a repressive institution, aimed at subduing the masses. Still and all, it's easier to send you than to have you underfoot. So off you go."
From "Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher" by Bruce Coville
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
