subjugate

verb

sub·​ju·​gate ˈsəb-ji-ˌgāt How to pronounce subjugate (audio)
subjugated; subjugating

transitive verb

1
: to bring under control and governance as a subject : conquer
2
: to make submissive : subdue
subjugation noun
subjugator noun

Did you know?

Since jugus means "yoke" in Latin, subjugate means literally "bring under the yoke". Farmers control oxen by means of a heavy wooden yoke over their shoulders. In ancient Rome, conquered soldiers, stripped of their uniforms, might actually be forced to pass under an ox yoke as a sign of submission to the Roman victors. Even without an actual yoke, what happens to a population that has come under the control of another can be every bit as humiliating. In dozens of countries throughout the world, ethnic minorities are denied basic rights and view themselves as subjugated by their country's government, army, and police.

Examples of subjugate in a Sentence

The emperor's armies subjugated the surrounding lands. a people subjugated by invaders
Recent Examples on the Web Israel’s absolute right to exist gives it no right to subjugate, let alone massacre, Palestinians. Steve Koppman, The Mercury News, 7 Mar. 2024 If Putin subjugates Ukraine, other former Russian imperial possessions, in particular the Baltic states, are likely to be in his sights. TIME, 21 Feb. 2024 Washington, after all, is already consumed with stopping Russia’s efforts to subjugate Ukraine and containing the axis directly (as well as with competing against China in the Indo-Pacific). Hamidreza Azizi, Foreign Affairs, 14 Feb. 2024 Related Stories In a departure from the killer robots of, say, The Matrix, the AIs at the center of these series are not driven by any internal desire to eliminate or subjugate humankind. Angie Han, The Hollywood Reporter, 20 Dec. 2023 Black conservatives understand better than most that some of the greatest evils in our nation's history have come from corrupt systems that try to target and subjugate others to deny them their freedom and to deny them their rights. CBS News, 25 Feb. 2024 The region’s vibrant, open trading networks would likely degenerate into more of a hub-and-spoke system, with China as the hub and subjugated countries at the end of the spokes. Andrew S. Erickson, Foreign Affairs, 16 Feb. 2024 From 1945 through the 1960s, a global order in which European powers took political control of other countries — occupying them with settlers, subjugating the local populations and exploiting the land and its inhabitants for economic gain — unraveled. Roger Cohen, New York Times, 10 Dec. 2023 These intelligence assessments correctly identified Moscow’s strategic objectives as political: Putin wished to subjugate Ukraine through military force, thereby keeping Ukraine in Russia’s sphere of influence and preventing it from further integration with the West. Alina Polyakova, Foreign Affairs, 1 Feb. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'subjugate.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Middle English, from Latin subjugatus, past participle of subjugare, from sub- + jugum yoke — more at yoke

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Time Traveler
The first known use of subjugate was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near subjugate

Cite this Entry

“Subjugate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/subjugate. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

subjugate

verb
sub·​ju·​gate ˈsəb-ji-ˌgāt How to pronounce subjugate (audio)
subjugated; subjugating
1
: to bring under control and rule as a subject : conquer
2
: to make willing to submit to others : subdue
subjugation noun
subjugator noun

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