subheading

IPA/ˈsʌbhedɪŋ/
IPA/ˈsʌbhedɪŋ/

subheading — noun

  • subheadingsingular
  • subheadingsplural

1. a short title placed at the start of a section within a longer text, telling rea

1.nounB2
Definition

a short title placed at the start of a section within a longer text, telling readers what that section is about

Example

The article's first subheading read 'A Brief History of the City'.

subheading quoting a section topic

Nora used clear subheadings to organize her science report on climate change.

Common collocations
  • add / include / insert subheadings
  • clear / descriptive / helpful subheadings
  • under the subheading
Synonyms
  • subhead

    shorter form; common in journalism and digital publishing

  • section title

    more general; can refer to any named part, including numbered parts in formal documents

  • subtitle

    often used for creative or published works such as books and films; may be decorative rather than structural

Grammar Patterns

subheading + for / of [topic]

Usage Note

Typically used in the plural form subheadings when referring to the overall structure of a document. The singular often appears in phrases like 'under the subheading…' or 'the subheading reads…'.

Common Mistakes

The subheading of the book was "The Great Adventure".
The title of the book was "The Great Adventure".
A book has a main title, not a subheading; subheadings divide the sections inside the book.
Please write a subheading for this picture.
Please write a caption for this picture.
A subheading organizes written text; text that describes an image is a caption.

Word family

Synonym discussion

Sense: noun/1

Subheading, subhead, subtitle, section heading, and caption all label secondary text near written content, but each has a distinct role. Subheading is the broadest term — any title that marks a section within a longer piece of writing. Subhead is a shortened form used mainly in journalism and online articles where space is tight. Subtitle appears most often in creative or published works, such as books and films, and can be decorative or explanatory ('The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey'). Section heading is more formal and generic, used in manuals, legal documents, and academic papers to label numbered parts. A caption is different: it describes an image, table, or figure rather than organizing the written content. For example, an essay might carry a title, then subheadings like 'Background' and 'Findings', and a caption below a photograph. Use subheading for everyday academic and professional writing; use subtitle for creative titles; use caption for images; and use section heading for formal numbered documents.

subhead ↗subtitle ↗section headingcaption ↗

Common collocations

Nouns

Phrases

  • add subheadings to
  • break into subheadings
  • organize under subheadings
  • divide into subheadings

Prepositions

  • under a subheading
  • in a subheading

Etymology

LatinOld EnglishEnglish

Subheading is formed from the prefix sub- (meaning 'under' or 'below', from Latin sub) and the noun heading (from Old English heafod, meaning 'head'). The word first appeared in English in the mid-1800s to describe a lower-level title that sits beneath the main heading of a text.

First known use

1842

1842, in the meaning defined above