Meaning & use
subdue
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Meanings
verbtransitive
To bring a person, group, or animal under control by force or effort.
Grammar: Takes an object: police subdued the suspect.
Patterns
- subdue someone
- subdue something
Officers subdued the man without anyone being hurt.
The army subdued the rebellion within a week.
It took three people to subdue the frightened horse.
verbtransitive
To make a feeling, sound, or light weaker or less intense.
Grammar: Takes an object such as noise, anger, or lighting.
Patterns
- subdue a feeling
He tried to subdue his anger before answering.
Thick curtains subdued the noise from the street.
The designer used soft lamps to subdue the harsh light.
Word forms
| third person singular | subdues |
|---|---|
| past tense | subdued |
| past participle | subdued |
| -ing form | subduing |
Common combinations
- subdue a suspect
- Two guards subdued the suspect quickly.
- subdue a rebellion
- The king failed to subdue the rebellion.
- subdue your emotions
- She struggled to subdue her fear.
- subdue the noise
- Foam panels subdue the noise in the studio.
- subdued lighting
- The restaurant had subdued lighting and quiet music.
- subdue the flames
- Firefighters worked to subdue the flames.
Synonyms and how they differ
- overpower
- Overpower stresses winning by greater strength, while subdue also covers calming feelings.
- suppress
- Suppress suggests holding something back or putting it down, often a feeling or an uprising, with less physical force.
- tame
- Tame implies making an animal or force gentle over time, whereas subdue can be quick and forceful.
- quell
- Quell is more formal and suits riots, fears, or doubts being put to an end.
Opposites
Word family
- subdued adjective
- quiet and low in mood, or soft in tone
- subduer noun
- a person who subdues, rare
- subjugate verb
- to bring under harsh control
- subjection noun
- the state of being controlled by another
Commonly confused: subdue or subtle? subdue or subjugate?
subdue vs subtle
Subtle means delicate or hard to notice, as in a subtle hint, and does not mean to control.
subdue vs subjugate
Subjugate is stronger and implies ruling over people harshly, while subdue can be a brief physical or emotional control.
Practice
It took several guards to ___ the angry prisoner.
Choose one answer.
Subdue means to bring under control by force. Subtract, subscribe, and subsidize start with the same sound but have unrelated meanings.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “subdue”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.