subculture

American  

[suhb-kuhl-cher, suhb-kuhl-cher] / sʌbˈkʌl tʃər, ˈsʌbˌkʌl tʃər /

verb (used with object)

subcultures, present (3rd person singular) subcultured, past participle, past subculturing present participle

1. Bacteriology. to cultivate (a bacterial strain) again on a new medium.

---

noun

subcultures plural

1. Bacteriology. a culture derived in this manner.

2. Sociology.

   1. the cultural values and behavioral patterns distinctive of a particular group in a society.

   2. a group having social, economic, ethnic, or other traits distinctive enough to distinguish it from others within the same culture or society.

subculture British  

noun

1. a subdivision of a national culture or an enclave within it with a distinct integrated network of behaviour, beliefs, and attitudes

2. a culture of microorganisms derived from another culture

---

verb

1. (tr) to inoculate (bacteria from one culture medium) onto another medium

subculture Cultural  

1. A group within a society that has its own shared set of customs, attitudes, and values, often accompanied by jargon or slang. A subculture can be organized around a common activity, occupation, age, status, ethnic background, race, religion, or any other unifying social condition, but the term is often used to describe deviant groups, such as thieves and drug users. (See counterculture.)

---

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• subcultural
  adjective
• subculturally
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• subcultures
  plural

Participles

• subculturing
  present
• subcultured
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• subculture
  simple
• subcultures
  simple
• have subcultured
  perfect
• has subcultured
  perfect
• am subculturing
  progressive
• are subculturing
  progressive
• is subculturing
  progressive
• have been subculturing
  perfect progressive
• has been subculturing
  perfect progressive

Past

• subcultured
  simple
• had subcultured
  perfect
• was subculturing
  progressive
• were subculturing
  progressive
• had been subculturing
  perfect progressive

Future

• will subculture
  simple
• will have subcultured
  perfect
• will be subculturing
  progressive
• will have been subculturing
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of subculture

First recorded in 1895–1900; sub- + culture

Explanation

A subculture is a group of people within a larger culture, such as a country, who have something in common. They might share religious or political beliefs or be science fiction fans, for example. A culture is how people live, sometimes based on where they live — you can refer to American culture, Canadian culture, or to an Australian culture. Within these larger cultures, there are also subcultures of many sizes. The Native American community is a subculture, as is the Mormon community. Also, subcultures can be based on interests, like "Deadheads" who used to follow around the rock band "The Grateful Dead." Before 1936, the word subculture was only used by scientists to talk about bacterial cultures.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

subculture subcultures

Being able to banter about blade height and the best time to aerate also gains you access to an office subculture.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 9, 2026

Swing declined in the 1960s, but it resurged decades later—though more as a subculture rather than a mainstream activity.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 15, 2026

At that time, I found this subculture fascinating, peculiar, sometimes repulsive and sometimes silly.

From MarketWatch ● Jun. 1, 2026

But I also wanted to let people know that the people involved in this subculture aren’t just in poverty trying to make it out and get on a record label.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 23, 2026

Paulie Porcini was part of the subculture of mushroom hunters who travel up and down the West Coast.

From "The Omnivore's Dilemma" by Michael Pollan

If I were on patrol to figure out where online subcultures were diverging from political reality, I’d start there.

From Slate ● Jul. 14, 2026

The incident spotlights a brewing anticorporate fervor in some internet subcultures, amplified by the national attention on Mangione, an Ivy League-educated 27-year-old who has pleaded not guilty.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 16, 2026

His content, and that of similar influencers, has brought looksmaxxing out of niche underground subcultures and made it more mainstream.

From BBC ● Mar. 14, 2026

And when it does, we can expect AI to become lifelong companion systems we depend on, befriend, and love, a prediction based on the AI affinity Birch says we are already seeing in certain subcultures.

From Salon ● Jun. 10, 2025

One of the most individualistic, interesting, and yes, gloomy subcultures, Goth is a style—of music, dress, state of mind.

From "Geeks: How Two Lost Boys Rode the Internet Out of Idaho" by Jon Katz