substitute

[ suhb-sti-toot, -tyoot ]

/ ˈsʌb stɪˌtut, -ˌtyut /

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See synonyms for: substitute / substituted / substitutes on Thesaurus.com

noun

a person or thing acting or serving in place of another.

(formerly) a person who, for payment, served in an army or navy in the place of a conscript.

Grammar. a word that functions as a replacement for any member of a class of words or constructions, as do in He doesn't know but I do.

verb (used with object), sub·sti·tut·ed, sub·sti·tut·ing.

to put (a person or thing) in the place of another.

to take the place of; replace.

Chemistry. to replace (one or more elements or groups in a compound) by other elements or groups.

verb (used without object), sub·sti·tut·ed, sub·sti·tut·ing.

to act as a substitute.

adjective

of or relating to a substitute or substitutes.

composed of substitutes.

OTHER WORDS FOR substitute

1 alternative, replacement, equivalent.

See synonyms for substitute on Thesaurus.com

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His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of substitute

1350–1400; Middle English <Latin substitūtus (past participle of substituere to put in place of), equivalent to sub-sub- + -stitū-, combining form of statū-, past participle stem of statuere (see substituent) + -tus past participle suffix

OTHER WORDS FROM substitute

sub·sti·tut·a·ble, adjectivesub·sti·tut·a·bil·i·ty, nounsub·sti·tut·er, nounsub·sti·tut·ing·ly, adverb

sub·sti·tu·tion, nounsub·sti·tu·tion·al, sub·sti·tu·tion·ar·y

[suhb-sti-too-shuh-ner-ee, -tyoo-], /ˌsʌb stɪˈtu ʃəˌnɛr i, -ˈtyu-/, adjectivesub·sti·tu·tion·al·ly, adverbin·ter·sub·sti·tut·a·bil·i·ty, nounin·ter·sub·sti·tut·a·ble, adjectivein·ter·sub·sti·tu·tion, nounnon·sub·sti·tut·ed, adjectivenon·sub·sti·tu·tion, nounnon·sub·sti·tu·tion·al, adjectivenon·sub·sti·tu·tion·al·ly, adverbnon·sub·sti·tu·tion·ar·y, adjectivepre·sub·sti·tute, verb (used with object), pre·sub·sti·tut·ed, pre·sub·sti·tut·ing.pre·sub·sti·tu·tion, nounpro·sub·sti·tu·tion, adjectiveun·sub·sti·tut·ed, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use substitute in a sentence

Swing Education, a startup that used to help schools hire substitute teachers, pivoted to help connect those same teachers to full-time pod gigs.
Teachers are leaving schools. Will they come to startups next?|Natasha Mascarenhas|October 30, 2020|TechCrunch
This particular kind of algorithm could be a very useful substitute for third-party cookies while still providing for increased privacy.
‘Very pleasantly surprised’ Google shares results of Privacy Sandbox experiments|Lara O'Reilly|October 22, 2020|Digiday
Supreme Court justices make their own recusal decisions, based on whether they have a personal stake in the case or their impartiality might be reasonably questioned and with the knowledge there cannot be a substitute if they sit it out.
Supreme Court split in Pa. election case raises questions about how a Justice Barrett would rule|Seung Min Kim, Robert Barnes|October 20, 2020|Washington Post
Even so, for air carriers there is substitute for flights to somewhere.
‘Flights to nowhere’ are popular. Experts explain the psychology behind the COVID-era concept|Grady McGregor|October 11, 2020|Fortune

That seemed wrong to me because it seemed often that face-to-face interactions and electronic interactions were complements, rather than substitutes.
Is New York City Over? (Ep. 434)|Stephen J. Dubner|October 8, 2020|Freakonomics

British Dictionary definitions for substitute

substitute

/ (ˈsʌbstɪˌtjuːt) /

verb

(often foll by for) to serve or cause to serve in place of another person or thing

chem to replace (an atom or group in a molecule) with (another atom or group)

logic maths to replace (one expression) by (another) in the context of a third, as replacing x + y for x in 3 x = k gives 3 x + 3 y = k

noun

a person or thing that serves in place of another, such as a player in a game who takes the place of an injured colleague
(as modifier)a substitute goalkeeper Often shortened to: sub

grammar another name for pro-form

Canadian another name for supply teacher

nautical another word for repeater (def. 5)

(formerly) a person paid to replace another due for military service

Derived forms of substitute

substitutable, adjectivesubstitutability, noun

Word Origin for substitute

C16: from Latin substituere, from sub- in place of + statuere to set up

usage for substitute

Substitute is sometimes wrongly used where replace is meant: he replaced (not substituted) the worn tyre with a new one

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

substitute

OTHER WORDS FOR substitute

Origin of substitute

OTHER WORDS FROM substitute

Words related to substitute

How to use substitute in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for substitute

Derived forms of substitute

Word Origin for substitute

usage for substitute