substitute
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.
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.
to act as a substitute.
of or relating to a substitute or substitutes.
composed of substitutes.
Origin of substitute
1Other words for substitute
Other words from substitute
- sub·sti·tut·a·ble, adjective
- sub·sti·tut·a·bil·i·ty, noun
- sub·sti·tut·er, noun
- sub·sti·tut·ing·ly, adverb
- sub·sti·tu·tion, noun
- sub·sti·tu·tion·al, sub·sti·tu·tion·ar·y [suhb-sti-too-shuh-ner-ee, -tyoo-], /ˌsʌb stɪˈtu ʃəˌnɛr i, -ˈtyu-/, adjective
- sub·sti·tu·tion·al·ly, adverb
- in·ter·sub·sti·tut·a·bil·i·ty, noun
- in·ter·sub·sti·tut·a·ble, adjective
- in·ter·sub·sti·tu·tion, noun
- non·sub·sti·tut·ed, adjective
- non·sub·sti·tu·tion, noun
- non·sub·sti·tu·tion·al, adjective
- non·sub·sti·tu·tion·al·ly, adverb
- non·sub·sti·tu·tion·ar·y, adjective
- pre·sub·sti·tute, verb (used with object), pre·sub·sti·tut·ed, pre·sub·sti·tut·ing.
- pre·sub·sti·tu·tion, noun
- pro·sub·sti·tu·tion, adjective
- un·sub·sti·tut·ed, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
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 | TechCrunchThis 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 | DigidaySupreme 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 PostEven 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 | FortuneThat seemed wrong to me because it seemed often that face-to-face interactions and electronic interactions were complements, rather than substitutes.
British Dictionary definitions for substitute
/ (ˈsʌbstɪˌtjuːt) /
(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
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
Origin of substitute
1usage For substitute
Derived forms of substitute
- substitutable, adjective
- substitutability, noun
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
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