Meaning & use
subversion
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Meanings
noununcountable
The act of trying to weaken or destroy a government, organization, or system from within, often secretly.
Grammar: Uncountable: use it with no article or with 'the', and it has no plural form.
Patterns
- subversion of something
- accused of subversion
- a campaign of subversion
The group was arrested and charged with subversion of the state.
The novel was banned for its alleged subversion of traditional values.
Foreign agents were accused of carrying out subversion against the government.
noununcountablefigurative
The process of undermining established ideas, institutions, or accepted ways of doing things.
Grammar: Also uncountable; often followed by 'of' plus the thing being undermined.
Patterns
- subversion of authority
- subversion of the rules
Her art is a gentle subversion of the art world's commercial values.
The comedy relies on the subversion of everyday expectations.
Common combinations
- accused of subversion
- The journalist was accused of subversion after publishing the leaked documents.
- a charge of subversion
- He faced a charge of subversion and could have been imprisoned.
- political subversion
- The regime feared political subversion more than foreign invasion.
- subversion of democracy
- They described the new law as a subversion of democracy.
- engage in subversion
- The officers were trained to detect anyone engaging in subversion.
Synonyms and how they differ
- sedition
- Sedition is a legal term for speech or action that encourages rebellion against authority; subversion can be broader and does not have to be spoken or public.
- undermining
- Undermining is the everyday word for gradually weakening something; subversion sounds more formal and suggests a deliberate, organized plan.
- sabotage
- Sabotage usually means physically damaging equipment or operations, while subversion works through influence, ideas, or secret persuasion.
Opposites
Word family
- subversive adjective
- Intended to weaken or overthrow a system or authority.
- subversive noun
- A person who tries to weaken or overthrow a system.
- subvert verb
- To weaken or destroy the power of something, especially a system or authority.
Commonly confused: subversion or submersion? subversion or diversion?
subversion vs submersion
Submersion means going under water or another liquid; subversion means undermining an authority or system. They sound similar but have completely different meanings.
subversion vs diversion
A diversion is a change of direction or a distraction; subversion is an attempt to weaken something from within.
Practice
The rebels were arrested for the ______ of the elected government.
Choose one answer.
'Subversion' means trying to weaken or overthrow a government from within, which fits the context of rebels being arrested. 'Submersion' means going under water, 'diversion' means a distraction or change of route, and 'conversion' means changing from one form to another.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “subversion”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.