Meaning & use
sublease
Last updated
Meanings
verbtransitive or intransitive
To rent out a property that you are already renting from someone else.
Grammar: Can take an object: sublease an apartment, or be used without one: They decided to sublease for a year.
Patterns
- sublease something
- sublease something to someone
- sublease from someone
She subleased her apartment to a student while she studied abroad.
The company subleases office space in the city center.
You need the landlord's permission to sublease the property.
nouncountable
A legal agreement in which a tenant rents out the property to another person.
Grammar: Countable: a sublease, the sublease, subleases.
Patterns
- sign a sublease
- a sublease agreement
- under a sublease
They signed a six-month sublease for the apartment.
The sublease must be approved by the original landlord.
He is living there under a sublease from the main tenant.
Word forms
| third person singular | subleases |
|---|---|
| past tense | subleased |
| past participle | subleased |
| -ing form | subleasing |
| plural | subleases |
Common combinations
- sublease an apartment
- They subleased their apartment for the summer.
- sublease to someone
- He subleased the room to a colleague.
- sublease agreement
- Read the sublease agreement carefully before signing.
- permission to sublease
- The lease requires written permission to sublease.
Synonyms and how they differ
- sublet
- Sublet is a more common informal synonym, especially in British English; sublease is slightly more formal and often used in legal contexts.
- rent out
- Rent out is a general phrasal verb that can apply to any property you own; sublease specifically means you are renting from someone else and then renting to a third party.
Word family
Commonly confused: sublease or sublet?
sublease vs sublet
Sublet is a synonym, but it is more common in everyday speech and can be a verb or noun; sublease is more formal and common in legal documents.
Practice
Before you ______ the apartment, you must get the landlord's written permission.
Choose one answer.
Sublease fits because it means to rent out a place you are already renting, and it is the formal term used in leases. 'Sublet' is a synonym but less formal; 'rent' and 'lease' are too general and do not capture the idea of renting from someone else.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “sublease”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.