subordinate
/səˈbɔːdɪnət/ (bre, ipa) · /səˈbɔːrdɪnət/ (ame, ipa) · /sə-ˈbȯr-də-nət -ˈbȯrd-nət/ (ame, mw) · /səˈbɔː.dɪ.nət/ (bre, ipa) · /səˈbɔːr.dən.ət/ (ame, ipa) · /səˈbɔː.dɪ.neɪt/ (bre, ipa) · /səˈbɔːr.dən.eɪt/ (ame, ipa)
subordinate — 形容詞
- subordinatepositive
- more subordinatecomparative
- most subordinatesuperlative
1. positioned below another person or group within a hierarchy — for example, a jun
下級；次要
地位或重要性較低的
positioned below another person or group within a hierarchy — for example, a junior doctor who takes instructions from a senior consultant.
As a junior researcher, Kian held a subordinate role on the science team.
身為初級研究員，Kian 在科學團隊中擔任下級的角色。
subordinate role — noun phrase describing job status
The warehouse staff at the Taipei depot are subordinate to the regional manager, Ayesha Chen.
台北倉儲部的員工在層級上從屬於區域經理 Ayesha Chen。
be subordinate to [person] — pattern for hierarchy
Élise refused to accept a subordinate position in the new product development team.
Élise 拒絕接受新產品開發團隊中一個次要的職位。
At the hospital where Anong works, subordinate nurses report directly to the head nurse on each floor.
在 Anong 工作的那家醫院，下級護理師直接向各樓層的護理長報告。
The student council at Evelyn's school plays a subordinate role to the principal's office in budget decisions.
Evelyn 學校的學生會在預算決策方面扮演較校長室次要的角色。
- junior
Less formal; used mainly for people in early career stages
- secondary
Focuses on importance rather than formal rank; also used for things, not just people
- lower-ranking
More literal and specific to official positions; slightly formal
文法句型
be subordinate to + noun phrase
常見錯誤
❗ 'She is subordinate than the team leader.' ✅ 'She is subordinate to the team leader.' — Subordinate takes the preposition 'to', not 'than'.
2. showing a willingness to obey another person's authority or to accept being cont
順從的
願意聽從權威的
showing a willingness to obey another person's authority or to accept being controlled without objecting — for example, an employee who never questions their boss's decisions.
Jude's subordinate attitude toward authority made him popular with the old-fashioned managers.
Jude 對權威的順從態度讓他在那些觀念傳統的主管面前很受歡迎。
subordinate attitude — describes a personal quality of obedience
General Mert expected a completely subordinate response from every soldier in his battalion.
Mert 將軍期望他營裡的每一名士兵都表現出完全順服的態度。
Adaeze found it difficult to remain subordinate to a boss whose cost-cutting plans she openly disagreed with.
Adaeze 發現要對一位她公開反對其削減成本計畫的老闆保持順從是很困難的。
In the rural village where Aylin grew up, wives were subordinate to their husbands in all family matters.
在 Aylin 成長的鄉村，妻子在所有家庭事務上都要順從丈夫。
- submissive
More direct and common; may imply weakness
- docile
Suggests being easy to manage or teach, with no hint of resistance
- obedient
Focuses on following rules or orders, not necessarily attitude
- defiant
Openly resisting authority
- rebellious
Actively refusing to obey
文法句型
be subordinate to + noun phrase
用法筆記
This sense describes a person's attitude or behaviour (willing obedience), rather than their official position in a hierarchy. Distinguish from sense 1 (LOWER RANK), which focuses on formal rank or job level.
3. relating to a clause in a sentence that cannot stand on its own as a complete st
從屬子句
不能獨立成句的子句
relating to a clause in a sentence that cannot stand on its own as a complete statement and depends on a main clause to give it full meaning — for example, 'when the rain stopped' in 'We left when the rain stopped'.
In the sentence 'Lan left because she felt unwell,' the clause after 'because' is a subordinate clause.
在句子 'Lan left because she felt unwell' 中，'because' 後面的子句是從屬子句。
subordinate clause introduced by 'because' — grammar pattern
During the grammar quiz, Saira underlined every subordinate clause that began with 'although' or 'unless' in a short story.
在文法小考中，Saira 在一篇短文中圈出了所有以 'although' 或 'unless' 開頭的從屬子句。
subordinate clause introduced by 'although' or 'unless' — subordinating conjunction pattern
Christopher struggled to identify which part of his history essay about the Korean War contained a subordinate clause.
Christopher 很難辨認出他那篇關於韓戰的歷史報告中哪一個部分含有從屬子句。
Jabari wrote 'if the rain stops soon' on the whiteboard, and his teacher explained it was just a subordinate clause.
Jabari 在白板上寫了 'if the rain stops soon'，老師解釋說那只是個從屬子句，不能自成一個完整的句子。
- dependent clause
More common term in modern grammar teaching; interchangeable with subordinate clause
- embedded clause
Describes a clause placed inside another clause; more technical
- main clause
A clause that can stand alone as a complete sentence
- independent clause
Same as main clause; the opposite of a dependent/subordinate clause
文法句型
subordinate clause + main clause
用法筆記
Only sense that is specific to grammar. A subordinate clause is also called a dependent clause. The opposite is an independent clause or main clause.
常見錯誤
❗ 'He wrote a subordinate sentence.' ✅ 'He wrote a sentence containing a subordinate clause.' — Subordinate describes a clause, not a sentence.
subordinate — 名詞
- subordinatesingular
- subordinatesplural
1. someone who works in an organisation but has a lower rank and less authority tha
下屬；部屬
職位較低的員工
someone who works in an organisation but has a lower rank and less authority than the person who is in charge of them.
The manager asked one of her subordinates to prepare the weekly sales report.
經理請她的一名下屬準備每週的銷售報告。
possessive + subordinates — common workplace pattern
At the weekly team meeting, Evelyn's supervisor listened carefully to suggestions from her subordinates about the new schedule.
在每週的團隊會議上，Evelyn 的主管仔細聽取下屬們對新排程的建議。
Joon spoke to all his subordinates in the marketing department before the product launch deadline.
Joon 在產品上市截止日期前與行銷部門所有下屬進行了溝通。
Sofia was known among her subordinates for being fair and approachable, often inviting their input during budget meetings.
Sofia 在她的下屬當中以公正且平易近人而聞名，經常在預算會議上邀請他們發表意見。
The new CEO, Gabriel, held one-to-one meetings with every subordinate to hear their ideas for improving workflow.
新任執行長 Gabriel 與每一位下屬進行一對一會談，聽取他們對改善工作流程的想法。
文法句型
possessive + subordinate
subordinate + of + noun phrase
用法筆記
Often used with a possessive determiner (e.g. 'her subordinates', 'my subordinates'). Common in workplace and military contexts. More formal than 'junior' or 'assistant'.
常見錯誤
❗ 'She is a subordinate of me.' ✅ 'She is my subordinate.' — Possessive determiners are more natural than 'of' phrases with this noun.
❗ 'He is my subordinate in rank.' ✅ 'He is my subordinate.' — Subordinate already implies a lower rank; adding 'in rank' is redundant.
2. a word that refers to a more specific thing within a larger category named by an
下位詞
意義被包含在另一詞中的詞
a word that refers to a more specific thing within a larger category named by another word — for example, 'poodle' is a subordinate of 'dog', and 'dog' is a subordinate of 'animal' (also called a hyponym).
In the linguistics class, Eli learned that 'rose' is a subordinate of the word 'flower'.
在語言學課上，Eli 學到 'rose' 是 'flower' 這個詞的下位詞。
subordinate of — linguistic relation pattern
In her linguistics textbook, Ada read that 'poodle' is a subordinate of 'dog', like 'dog' is of 'animal'.
在語言學教科書中，Ada 讀到 'poodle' 是 'dog' 的下位詞，就像 'dog' 是 'animal' 的下位詞一樣。
Hyun looked up several subordinates of 'vehicle' — such as 'car', 'bus', and 'truck' — for the vocabulary assignment.
Hyun 為了詞彙作業查了 'vehicle' 的幾個下位詞，例如 'car'、'bus' 和 'truck'。
Ryo's English teacher showed the class how a thesaurus lists common subordinates of a broad word like 'colour'.
Ryo 的英文老師向全班示範了同義詞詞典如何列出像 'colour' 這類廣義詞的常見下位詞。
- hyponym
The standard linguistic term for a word with a narrower meaning
- specific term
Non-technical way to describe the same idea
- superordinate
A word whose meaning includes that of another word; also called hypernym
- hypernym
The standard term for a broader category word
文法句型
subordinate of + noun phrase
用法筆記
This is a technical term in linguistics. The opposite is a 'superordinate' or 'hypernym'. The more common everyday term for this concept is 'hyponym'.
subordinate — 動詞
- subordinatepresent simple I / you / we / they
- subordinates3rd person singular
- subordinating-ing form
- subordinatedpast simple
1. to regard or handle a person, group, or thing as having lower worth or priority
使從屬；貶低
把某人或某物置於次要地位
to regard or handle a person, group, or thing as having lower worth or priority than another — for example, putting a company's profits ahead of its workers' well-being.
Marco felt his manager was trying to subordinate him to the new project leader.
Marco 覺得他的主管試圖把他置於新專案負責人之下。
subordinate [person] to [person] — hierarchy pattern
The factory's new safety policy subordinates workers' health needs to daily production targets set by management.
工廠的新安全政策將員工的健康需求置於管理層設定的每日生產目標之下。
subordinate [noun] to [noun] — prioritisation pattern
Dewi refused to subordinate her artistic vision to the sponsor's demands for brighter, louder designs.
Dewi 拒絕為了贊助商對更亮眼、更搶眼設計的要求而貶低自己的藝術視野。
The local government was accused of subordinating coastal environmental protection to short-term tourism profits.
地方政府被指控將沿海環境保護置於短期旅遊收益之下。
The new school rules at Lan's high school subordinate classroom creativity to strict exam preparation schedules.
Lan 就讀的高中的新校規將課堂創造力置於嚴格的考試準備時程之下。
- prioritise
To treat something as more important than other things
- elevate
To raise to a higher rank or position
文法句型
subordinate + noun phrase + to + noun phrase
用法筆記
Follows the pattern 'subordinate + noun phrase + to + noun phrase', where the element after 'to' is the one given higher priority. The verb is frequently used in formal or critical discussions of policy and management.
常見錯誤
❗ 'The manager subordinated his assistant.' ✅ 'The manager subordinated his assistant to the senior consultant.' — This verb always requires 'to' to indicate who or what is given higher priority.
❗ 'They subordinated the plan.' ✅ 'They subordinated the plan to the budget constraints.' — Without 'to', the sentence feels incomplete; the verb needs both an object and a target of comparison.