Standard Lemma guide

sub-

prefix · 3 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.

Sound

Pronunciation

Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.

  • sŭb
  • /sʌb/
  • US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • General-American: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.

1

prefix

Meaning 1

Under, beneath.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: morpheme

Examples

  • subterranean
  • submarine

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

2

prefix

Meaning 2

Subsidiary, secondary.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: morpheme

Examples

  • subplot

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

3

prefix

Meaning 3

Almost, nearly.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

Usage: morpheme

Examples

  • subconical
  • subequatorial

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: none provided

Antonyms: none provided

History

Etymology

Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *upó Proto-Italic *supo Latin sub Latin sub-der. English sub- From Latin sub- (“under”). Doublet of hypo-.

Across languages

Translations

71 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Armenian: ենթա- (entʻa-) — under, beneath
  • Armenian: ստոր- (stor-) — under, beneath
  • Breton: is- — under, beneath
  • Catalan: sub- — under, beneath
  • Chinese Mandarin: 亞 /亚 (yà) — under, beneath
  • Chinese Mandarin: 子 (zǐ) — under, beneath
  • Czech: sub- — under, beneath
  • Czech: pod- — under, beneath
  • Dutch: sub- — under, beneath
  • Dutch: onder- — under, beneath
  • Finnish: ala- — under, beneath
  • Finnish: ali- — under, beneath
  • French: sous- — under, beneath
  • French: sub- — under, beneath
  • Galician: sub- — under, beneath
  • German: unter- — under, beneath
  • German: sub- — under, beneath
  • Greek: υπο- (ypo-) — under, beneath
  • Hebrew: תַּת־ (tat-) — under, beneath
  • Hungarian: szub- — under, beneath
  • Ido: sub- — under, beneath
  • Italian: sotto- — under, beneath
  • Italian: sub- — under, beneath
  • Malay: sub- — under, beneath
  • Norwegian Bokmål: under- — under, beneath
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: under- — under, beneath
  • Old English: under- — under, beneath
  • Persian: زیرـ (zir-) — under, beneath
  • Polish: pod- — under, beneath
  • Portuguese: sub- — under, beneath
  • Portuguese: so- — under, beneath
  • Russian: под- (pod-) — under, beneath
  • Russian: суб- (sub-) — under, beneath
  • Scottish Gaelic: fo- — under, beneath
  • Scottish Gaelic: frith- — under, beneath
  • Spanish: sub- — under, beneath
  • Spanish: so- — under, beneath
  • Spanish: sota- — under, beneath
  • Spanish: soto- — under, beneath
  • Swedish: under- — under, beneath
  • Unami: èkw- — under, beneath
  • Welsh: is- — under, beneath
  • Breton: eil- — subsidiary, secondary
  • Breton: bes- — subsidiary, secondary
  • Chinese Mandarin: 副 (fù) — subsidiary, secondary
  • Dutch: deel- — subsidiary, secondary
  • Esperanto: sub- — subsidiary, secondary
  • Finnish: ala- — subsidiary, secondary
  • Finnish: ali- — subsidiary, secondary
  • Galician: sub- — subsidiary, secondary
  • Greek: υπο- (ypo-) — subsidiary, secondary
  • Greek: παρα- (para-) — subsidiary, secondary
  • Norwegian Bokmål: under- — subsidiary, secondary
  • Norwegian Nynorsk: under- — subsidiary, secondary
  • Old English: under- — subsidiary, secondary
  • Persian: زیرـ (zir-) — subsidiary, secondary
  • Polish: pod- — subsidiary, secondary
  • Portuguese: sub- — subsidiary, secondary
  • Spanish: sub- — subsidiary, secondary
  • Spanish: so- — subsidiary, secondary
  • Spanish: sota- — subsidiary, secondary
  • Spanish: soto- — subsidiary, secondary
  • Welsh: is- — subsidiary, secondary
  • Chinese Mandarin: 類 /类 (lèi) — almost, nearly
  • Chinese Mandarin: 近 (jìn) — almost, nearly
  • Finnish: ala- — almost, nearly
  • Finnish: ali- — almost, nearly
  • Japanese: 亜 (a) — almost, nearly
  • Polish: sub- — almost, nearly
  • Russian: суб- (sub-) — almost, nearly
  • Welsh: is- — almost, nearly