Subject | Mean of subject in English Dictionary

/ˈsʌbʤɪkt/

• Noun
• the person or thing that is being discussed or described
1. The new museum is the subject of an article in today's paper.
2. Death is a difficult subject that few people like to talk about.
3. I need to break the news to her, but I'm not sure how to bring up the subject.
4. If you're interested in linguistics, I know an excellent book on the/that subject.
5. an excellent book on the subject of linguistics
6. While we're on the subject of [=talking about] work, have you met the new boss?
7. Every time I talk to her, we seem to get on/onto the subject of work. [=we start talking about work]
8. These meetings would be much shorter if we could keep him from getting off the subject.
9. I didn't want to talk about work, so I changed the subject. [=started a new topic of conversation]
10. When he started getting upset, I dropped the subject. [=stopped talking about that topic]
11. The morality of capital punishment is a frequent subject of/for debate.
• an area of knowledge that is studied in school
1. Chemistry was my favorite subject in high school.
2. The classes cover a variety of subject areas, including mathematics and English.
• a person or thing that is being dealt with in a particular way
1. He was the subject of a criminal investigation. [=he was investigated to find out if he had committed a crime]
2. She was the subject of a lawsuit.

• someone or something that is shown in a photograph, painting, etc.
1. Love between a mother and child is the subject of many of her paintings.
2. The photographer's principal subjects were poor immigrant workers.
3. What kind of exposure should I use for a dark subject on a light background?
• a person or animal that is used in an experiment, study, etc.
1. Each subject was asked to fill out a questionnaire.
2. The hospital is recruiting test subjects for the study.
• a noun, noun phrase, or pronoun that performs the action of a verb in a sentence
1. In English, the subject goes before the verb and the object comes after.
2. “He” is the subject (of the verb “kissed”) in the sentence “He kissed me.”
• a person who lives in a country that is ruled by a king or queen
1. British subjects
• under the control of a ruler
1. subject peoples
2. They were subject to the emperor.
• affected by or possibly affected by (something)
1. Clothing purchases over $200 are subject to tax. [=tax must be paid on clothing purchases over $200]
2. Anyone caught trespassing is subject to a $500 fine. [=anyone caught trespassing will have to pay a $500 fine]
3. The firm is subject to state law.
4. The schedule is tentative and subject to change. [=the schedule may be changed at a later date]
• likely to do, have, or suffer from (something)
1. My cousin is subject to panic attacks.
2. I'd rather not live in an area that is subject to flooding. [=an area where floods occur]
• dependent on something else to happen or be true
1. The sale of the property is subject to approval by the city council. [=the property cannot be sold unless the city council approves the sale]
2. All rooms are just $100 a night, subject to availability.
• Verb
• to cause or force (someone or something) to experience (something harmful, unpleasant, etc.)
1. They are suspected of subjecting their children to abuse. [=of abusing their children]
2. The test involved subjecting the sample to intense heat.
3. The prisoners were subjected to torture.
4. During the hurricane, many buildings were subjected to [=many buildings experienced] 100 mile-per-hour winds.
5. No one should have to be subjected to my uncle's bad jokes.
6. His argument was subjected to careful analysis. [=was carefully analyzed]
• to bring (someone or something) under (your control or rule)
1. He subjected her to his will. [=he forced her to do what he wanted her to do]
2. Alexander the Great subjected much of Europe and Asia to his rule.