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
Related Words
See defeat.
Other Word Forms
- presubdue verb (used with object)
- subduable adjective
- subduableness noun
- subduably adverb
- subdual noun
- subduer noun
- subduingly adverb
- unsubduable adjective
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”; subduct
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.
But one shopper from Glasgow said she preferred the more subdued Boxing Day atmosphere.
From BBC
But in recent years, the country’s military has subdued many groups and the Philippine government has said there is no evidence the Akrams received military training in the country.
Economic data flow is likely to be very subdued during the next two weeks due to the Christmas and New Year’s holidays, two members of CBA’s Global Economic & Markets Research say in a research report.
Crawley brought up a well deserved 50 and with an uncharacteristically subdued Brook began a rebuild before his partner badly mistimed a reverse sweep and was bowled by a classic Lyon off-break.
From Barron's
Tough conditions in the premium-car market in China, paired with the impact from U.S. import tariffs and subdued demand, will weigh on the German group’s profitability and free operating cash flow, the rating agency says.
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.
