Meaning & use
subjects
Last updated
“subjects” is a form of “subject”. See that entry for the full set of meanings.
Meanings
nounplural
Areas of study taught at school or college, such as history or chemistry.
Grammar: Plural of subject: school subjects.
Patterns
- study subjects
- a subject at school
Math and music are her favorite subjects.
Students must pick three subjects after age sixteen.
Which subjects are you taking this term?
nounplural
Topics or things that people discuss, write about or deal with.
Grammar: Plural of subject: subjects of conversation.
Patterns
- discuss subjects
- subjects of something
Politics and money are tricky subjects at dinner.
The painter chose ordinary subjects such as bowls of fruit.
We covered several subjects in the meeting.
nounpluraltechnical
In grammar, the words in a sentence that name who or what does the action of the verb.
Grammar: Grammar term: the subjects of two clauses.
Patterns
- the subjects of verbs
In English, subjects normally come before the verb.
Underline the subjects in these sentences.
Some languages leave out the subjects when they are clear.
nounplural
People who live under the rule of a king, queen or government.
Grammar: Used about monarchies: the queen's subjects.
Patterns
- the king's subjects
The king's subjects gathered in the square.
British subjects carry a passport from the Crown.
The ruler promised fair laws to all her subjects.
Word forms
| singular | subject |
|---|
Common combinations
- school subjects
- Her favorite school subjects are art and biology.
- sensitive subjects
- Avoid sensitive subjects at dinner.
- core subjects
- English and math are core subjects.
- change the subject
- Let's change the subject, please.
- loyal subjects
- The queen thanked her loyal subjects.
Synonyms and how they differ
- topics
- Topics are things to talk about, while subjects can also be courses or ruled people.
- courses
- Courses are specific classes, whereas subjects are broad areas of study.
- themes
- Themes are the central ideas of a work, which is narrower than subjects.
- citizens
- Citizens are members of a modern state; subjects are ruled by a monarch.
Opposites
Word family
- subject noun
- one topic, course or person under rule
- subjective adjective
- based on personal feeling
- subjectivity noun
- personal opinion or feeling
- subject verb
- to cause to experience something
Commonly confused: subjects or objects?
subjects vs objects
Objects in grammar receive the action, while subjects do it.
Practice
In the sentence The dog chased the cat, what is the subject?
Choose one answer.
The dog does the chasing, so it is the grammatical subject. The cat receives the action, so it is the object.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “subjects”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.