Definify.com

Webster 1913 Edition

Subject

Sub-ject′

,
Adj.
[OE.
suget
, OF.
souzget
,
sougit
(in which the first part is L.
subtus
below, fr.
sub
under),
subgiet
,
subject
, F.
sujet
, from L.
subjectus
lying under, subjected, p. p. of
subjicere
,
subicere
, to throw, lay, place, or bring under;
sub
under +
jacere
to throw. See
Jet
a shooting forth.]
1.
Placed or situated under; lying below, or in a lower situation.
[Obs.]
Spenser.
2.
Placed under the power of another; specifically
(International Law)
, owing allegiance to a particular sovereign or state;
as, Jamaica is
subject
to Great Britain
.
Esau was never
subject
to Jacob.
Locke.
3.
Exposed; liable; prone; disposed;
as, a country
subject
to extreme heat; men
subject
to temptation.
All human things are
subject
to decay.
Dryden.
4.
Obedient; submissive.
Put them in mind to be
subject
to principalities.
Titus iii. 1.
Syn. – Liable; subordinate; inferior; obnoxious; exposed. See
Liable
.

Sub-ject′

,
Noun.
[From L.
subjectus
, through an old form of F.
sujet
. See
Subject
,
Adj.
]
1.
That which is placed under the authority, dominion, control, or influence of something else.
2.
Specifically: One who is under the authority of a ruler and is governed by his laws; one who owes allegiance to a sovereign or a sovereign state;
as, a
subject
of Queen Victoria; a British
subject
; a
subject
of the United States.
Was never
subject
longed to be a king,
As I do long and wish to be a
subject
.
Shakespeare
The
subject
must obey his prince, because God commands it, human laws require it.
Swift.
☞ In international law, the term subject is convertible with citizen.
3.
That which is subjected, or submitted to, any physical operation or process; specifically
(Anat.)
, a dead body used for the purpose of dissection.
4.
That which is brought under thought or examination; that which is taken up for discussion, or concerning which anything is said or done.
“This subject for heroic song.”
Milton.
Make choice of a
subject
, beautiful and noble, which . . . shall afford an ample field of matter wherein to expatiate.
Dryden.
The unhappy
subject
of these quarrels.
Shakespeare
5.
The person who is treated of; the hero of a piece; the chief character.
Writers of particular lives . . . are apt to be prejudiced in favor of their
subject
.
C. Middleton.
6.
(Logic & Gram.)
That of which anything is affirmed or predicated; the theme of a proposition or discourse; that which is spoken of;
as, the nominative case is the
subject
of the verb
.
The
subject
of a proposition is that concerning which anything is affirmed or denied.
I. Watts.
7.
That in which any quality, attribute, or relation, whether spiritual or material, inheres, or to which any of these appertain; substance; substratum.
That which manifests its qualities – in other words, that in which the appearing causes inhere, that to which they belong – is called their
subject
or substance, or substratum.
Sir W. Hamilton.
8.
Hence, that substance or being which is conscious of its own operations; the mind; the thinking agent or principal; the ego. Cf.
Object
,
Noun.
, 2.
The philosophers of mind have, in a manner, usurped and appropriated this expression to themselves. Accordingly, in their hands, the phrases
conscious
or
thinking subject
, and
subject
, mean precisely the same thing.
Sir W. Hamilton.
9.
(Mus.)
The principal theme, or leading thought or phrase, on which a composition or a movement is based.
The earliest known form of
subject
is the ecclesiastical
cantus firmus
, or plain song.
Rockstro.
10.
(Fine Arts)
The incident, scene, figure, group, etc., which it is the aim of the artist to represent.

Sub-ject′

,
Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Subjected
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Subjecting
.]
1.
To bring under control, power, or dominion; to make subject; to subordinate; to subdue.
Firmness of mind that
subjects
every gratification of sense to the rule of right reason.
C. Middleton.
In one short view
subjected
to our eye,
Gods, emperors, heroes, sages, beauties, lie.
Pope.
He is the most
subjected
, the most [GREEK]nslaved, who is so in his understanding.
Locke.
2.
To expose; to make obnoxious or liable;
as, credulity
subjects
a person to impositions
.
3.
To submit; to make accountable.
God is not bound to
subject
his ways of operation to the scrutiny of our thoughts.
Locke.
4.
To make subservient.
Subjected
to his service angel wings.
Milton.
5.
To cause to undergo;
as, to
subject
a substance to a white heat; to
subject
a person to a rigid test
.

Webster 1828 Edition

Subject

SUBJECT

,
Adj.
1.
Placed or situate under.
--The eastern tower whose height commands, as subject, all the vale, to see the fight.
2.
Being under the power and dominion of another; as, Jamaica is subject to Great Britain.
Esau was never subject to Jacob.
3.
Exposed; liable from extraneous causes; as a country subject to extreme heat or cold.
4.
Liable from inherent causes; prone; disposed.
All human things are subject to decay.
5.
Being that on which nay thing operates, whether intellectual or material; as the subject-matter of a discourse.
6.
Obedient. Titus 3. Colossians 2.

SUBJECT

,
Noun.
[L.]
1.
One that owes allegiance to a sovereign and is governed by his laws. The natives of Great Britain are subjects of the British government. The natives of the United States, and naturalized foreigners, are subjects of the federal government. Men in free governments, are subjects as well as citizens; as citizens, they enjoy rights and franchises; as subjects, they are bound to obey the laws.
The subject must obey his prince, because God commands it, and human laws require it.
2.
That on which any mental operation is performed; that which is treated or handled; as a subject of discussion before the legislature; a subject of negotiation.
This subject for heroic song pleasd me.
The subject of a proposition is that concerning which any thing is affirmed or denied.
3.
That on which any physical operation is performed; as a subject for dissection or amputation.
4.
That in which any thing inheres or exists.
Anger is certainly a kind of baseness, as it appears well in the weakness of those subjects in whom it reigns.
5.
The person who is treated of; the hero of a piece.
Authors of biography are apt to be prejudiced in favor of their subject.
6.
In grammar, the nominative case to a verb passive.

SUBJECT

,
Verb.
T.
1.
To bring under the power or dominion of. Alexander subjected a great part of the civilized world to his dominion.
Firmness of mind that subjects every gratification of sense to the rule of right reason--
2.
To put under or within the power of.
In one short view subjected to our eye, gods, emperors, heroes, sages, beauties lie.
3.
To enslave; to make obnoxious.
He is the most subjected, the most enslaved, who is so in his understanding.
4.
To expose; to make liable. Credulity subjects a person to impositions.
5.
To submit; to make accountable.
God is not bound to subject his ways of operation to the scrutiny of our thoughts--
6.
To make subservient.
--Subjected to his service angel wings.
7.
To cause to undergo; as, to subject a substance to a white heat; to subject it to a rigid test.

Definition 2024

subject

subject

English

Pronunciation

  • enPR: sŭbʹjĕkt, IPA(key): /ˈsʌb.dʒɛkt/
  • (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈsʌb.dʒɪkt/
  • Hyphenation: sub‧ject

Adjective

subject ‎(comparative more subject, superlative most subject)

  1. Likely to be affected by or to experience something.
    a country subject to extreme heat
    • Dryden
      All human things are subject to decay.
    • 2013 June 22, “T time”, in The Economist, volume 407, number 8841, page 68:
      The ability to shift profits to low-tax countries by locating intellectual property in them […] is often assumed to be the preserve of high-tech companies. […] current tax rules make it easy for all sorts of firms to generate […] “stateless income”: profit subject to tax in a jurisdiction that is neither the location of the factors of production that generate the income nor where the parent firm is domiciled.
    Menu listings and prices are subject to change.‎
    He's subject to sneezing fits.‎
  2. Conditional upon.
    The local board sets local policy, subject to approval from the State Board.‎
  3. Placed or situated under; lying below, or in a lower situation.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Spenser to this entry?)
  4. Placed under the power of another; owing allegiance to a particular sovereign or state.
    • John Locke
      Esau was never subject to Jacob.
Translations

Etymology 2

From Latin subiectus ‎(“a subject, an inferior”), subiectum ‎(“the subject of a proposition”), past participle of subiciō ‎(“throw, lay, place”), from sub ‎(“under, at the foot of”) + iaciō ‎(“throw, hurl”).

Pronunciation

  • enPR: sŭbʹjĕkt, IPA(key): /ˈsʌb.dʒɛkt/
  • (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /ˈsʌb.dʒɪkt/
  • Hyphenation: sub‧ject

Noun

subject ‎(plural subjects)

  1. (grammar) In a clause: the word or word group (usually a noun phrase) that is dealt with. In active clauses with verbs denoting an action, the subject and the actor are usually the same.
    In the sentence ‘The mouse is eaten by the cat in the kitchen.’, ‘The mouse’ is the subject, ‘the cat’ being the agent.‎
  2. An actor; one who takes action.
    The subjects and objects of power.
  3. The main topic of a paper, work of art, discussion, field of study, etc.
    • John Milton (1608-1674)
      the subject for heroic song
    • John Dryden (1631-1700)
      Make choice of a subject, beautiful and noble, which […] shall afford an ample field of matter wherein to expatiate.
    • William Shakespeare (1564-1616)
      the unhappy subject of these quarrels
    • 1905, Baroness Emmuska Orczy, chapter 5, in The Hocussing of Cigarette:
      Then I had a good think on the subject of the hocussing of Cigarette, and I was reluctantly bound to admit that once again the man in the corner had found the only possible solution to the mystery.
    • 1922, Ben Travers, chapter 5, in A Cuckoo in the Nest:
      The departure was not unduly prolonged. […] Within the door Mrs. Spoker hastily imparted to Mrs. Love a few final sentiments on the subject of Divine Intention in the disposition of buckets; farewells and last commiserations; a deep, guttural instigation to the horse; and the wheels of the waggonette crunched heavily away into obscurity.
  4. A particular area of study.
    Her favorite subject is physics.‎
    • 2014 June 14, “It's a gas”, in The Economist, volume 411, number 8891:
      One of the hidden glories of Victorian engineering is proper drains. […] But out of sight is out of mind. And that, together with the inherent yuckiness of the subject, means that many old sewers have been neglected and are in dire need of repair.
  5. A citizen in a monarchy.
    I am a British subject.‎
  6. A person ruled over by another, especially a monarch or state authority.
  7. (music) The main theme or melody, especially in a fugue.
    • W. S. Rockstro (1823-1895)
      The earliest known form of subject is the ecclesiastical cantus firmus, or plain song.
  8. A human, animal or an inanimate object that is being examined, treated, analysed, etc.
    • Conyers Middleton (1683-1750)
      Writers of particular lives […] are apt to be prejudiced in favour of their subject.
    • 2013 July-August, Catherine Clabby, “Focus on Everything”, in American Scientist:
      Not long ago, it was difficult to produce photographs of tiny creatures with every part in focus. That’s because the lenses that are excellent at magnifying tiny subjects produce a narrow depth of field.
  9. (philosophy) A being that has subjective experiences, subjective consciousness, or a relationship with another entity.
  10. (logic) That of which something is stated.
Synonyms
Derived terms
Translations
See also

Etymology 3

From Medieval Latin subiectō, iterative of subiciō ‎(“throw, lay, place”), from sub ‎(“under, at the foot of”) + iaciō ‎(“throw, hurl”).

Pronunciation

  • enPR: səb-jĕktʹ, IPA(key): /səbˈdʒɛkt/, /sʌbˈdʒɛkt/
  • Rhymes: -ɛkt

Verb

subject ‎(third-person singular simple present subjects, present participle subjecting, simple past and past participle subjected)

  1. (transitive, construed with to) To cause (someone or something) to undergo a particular experience, especially one that is unpleasant or unwanted.

Synonyms

Translations

Statistics

Most common English words before 1923: dark · ye · common · #439: subject · can't · ready · ought

Etymology

From Middle English subget, from Old French suget, from Latin subiectus ‎(“lying under or near, adjacent, also subject, exposed”), as a noun, subiectus ‎(“a subject, an inferior”), subiectum ‎(“the subject of a proposition”), past participle of subiciō ‎(“throw, lay, place”), from sub ‎(“under, at the foot of”) + iaciō ‎(“throw, hurl”).

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