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sub

noun

a submarine.

a substitute.

a submarine sandwich. See hero sandwich.

a subcontractor.

a sublieutenant.

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a subordinate.

a subaltern.

British. an advance against one's wages, especially one granted as a subsistence allowance.

Photography. a substratum.

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verb (used without object)

10.

to act as a substitute for another.

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Sub is one of our favorite verbs.

So is peculate. Does it mean:

to steal or take dishonestly (money, esp. public funds, or property entrusted to one's care); embezzle.

to flee; abscond:

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verb (used with object)

11.

Photography. to coat (a film or plate) with a substratum.

Origin:
by shortening of words prefixed with sub-

Regional variation note
3. See hero sandwich.

Example Sentences

The anatomy of the shark-shaped sub and its closed-circuit pneumatic system.

The scientists have said the sediment may be what kept the sub so well preserved.

It's the same model as the sub that was sunk because of a malfunctioning toilet.

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Dictionary.com Unabridged

supplemental unemployment benefits.

a prefix occurring originally in loanwords from Latin (subject; subtract; subvert; subsidy); on this model, freely attached to elements of any origin and used with the meaning “under,” “below,” “beneath” (subalpine; substratum), “slightly,” “imperfectly,” “nearly” (subcolumnar; subtropical), “secondary,” “subordinate” (subcommittee; subplot).

Chemistry.

a prefix indicating a basic compound: subacetate; subcarbonate; subnitrate.

a prefix indicating that the element is present in a relatively small proportion, i.e., in a low oxidation state: subchloride; suboxide.

Also, su-, suc-, suf-, sug-, sum-, sup-, sur-, sus-.

Origin:
< Latin, combining form representing sub (preposition); akin to Greek hypó; see hypo-

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2012.
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Link To Sub

Collins

World English Dictionary

sub (sʌb)

—n
1.	subaltern subeditor submarine subordinate subscription substandard substitute See substratum short for several words beginning with sub-
2.	informal (Brit) Formal term: subsistence allowance an advance payment of wages or salary

—vb , subs, subbing, subbed
3.	(intr) to serve as a substitute
4.	informal (intr) to act as a substitute (for)
5.	informal (Brit) to grant or receive (an advance payment of wages or salary)
6.	informal (tr) short for subedit
7.	(tr) photog to apply a substratum to (a film or plate base)

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline

Word Origin & History

sub-

prefix of L. origin meaning "under," from L. preposition sub "under" (also "close to, up to, towards"), from a variant form (*(s)up-, perhaps representing *ex-upo-) of PIE base *upo- "from below," hence "turning upward, upward, up, up from under, over, beyond" (cf. Skt. upa "near, under, up to, on,"

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Gk. hypo "under," Goth. iup, O.N., O.E. upp "up, upward," Hittite up-zi "rises"). Used as a prefix and in various combinations. The original meaning is now obscured in many words from Latin (suggest, suspect, subject, etc.); the prefix is active in Mod. Eng., however, sometimes meaning "subordinate" (as in subcontinent, first recorded 1863) or "inferior" (a sense first attested 1963). Many such words are transparent (e.g. subcommittee, 1610) and etymologies of their root words may be found under those headings. As a word of its own, sub is first recorded 1830, as a shortened form of substitute (originally of printer's substitutes). The verb in this sense is from 1853.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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American Heritage

Medical Dictionary

sub- pref.

Below; under; beneath: subcutaneous.
Subordinate; secondary: subinfection.
Subdivision: subkingdom.
Less than completely or normally; nearly; almost: subfertility.

American Heritage

Science Dictionary

sub-
A prefix that means "underneath or lower" (as in subsoil), "a subordinate or secondary part of something else" (as in subphylum.), or "less than completely" (as in subtropical.)

Slang Dictionary

sub definition

n.
a substitute. : I was a sub in the school system for a while.
in.
to serve as a temporary replacement. : I subbed for Mary in a couple of games.
n.
a submarine. : I was aboard a sub for twenty minutes—and that was at Disney World.
Go to submarine (sense 1). :
n.
a subscription, as to a magazine. : I got a sub to a computer magazine for my birthday.

Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Computing Dictionary