subdued


Also found in: Thesaurus.

sub·due

 (səb-do͞o′, -dyo͞o′)
tr.v. sub·dued, sub·du·ing, sub·dues
1. To subjugate (a region or people, for example) by military force.
2.
a. To bring under control by physical force, persuasion, or other means; overcome: subdued the wild horse; subdued the rebellion in the party ranks.
b. To make less intense or prominent; reduce or tone down: I was unable to subdue my excitement about the upcoming holiday.
3. To bring (land) under cultivation: Farmers subdued the arid lands of Australia.

[Middle English subduen, alteration (influenced by Latin subdere, to subject) of Old French suduire, to seduce, from Latin subdūcere, to withdraw (probably influenced by Latin sēdūcere, to seduce) : sub-, away; see sub- + dūcere, to lead; see deuk- in Indo-European roots.]

sub·du′a·ble adj.
sub·du′er n.
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

subdued

(səbˈdjuːd)
adj
1. cowed, passive, or shy
2. gentle or quiet: a subdued whisper.
3. (of colours, etc) not harsh or bright: subdued lighting.
subˈduedly adv
subˈduedness n
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

sub•dued

(səbˈdud, -ˈdyud)

adj.
1. quiet; repressed; controlled.
2. reduced in fullness of tone, as a color or sound; muted.
[1595–1605]
sub•dued′ly, adv.
sub•dued′ness, n.
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:
Adj.1.subdued - in a softened tone; "hushed voices"; "muted trumpets"; "a subdued whisper"; "a quiet reprimand"
soft - (of sound) relatively low in volume; "soft voices"; "soft music"
2.subdued - restrained in style or qualitysubdued - restrained in style or quality; "a little masterpiece of low-keyed eloquence"
restrained - under restraint
3.subdued - quieted and brought under control; "children were subdued and silent"
tame - very restrained or quiet; "a tame Christmas party"; "she was one of the tamest and most abject creatures imaginable with no will or power to act but as directed"
4.subdued - not brilliant or glaring; "the moon cast soft shadows"; "soft pastel colors"; "subdued lighting"
dull - emitting or reflecting very little light; "a dull glow"; "dull silver badly in need of a polish"; "a dull sky"
5.subdued - lacking in light; not bright or harsh; "a dim light beside the bed"; "subdued lights and soft music"
dark - devoid of or deficient in light or brightness; shadowed or black; "sitting in a dark corner"; "a dark day"; "dark shadows"; "dark as the inside of a black cat"
Based on WordNet 3.0, Farlex clipart collection. © 2003-2012 Princeton University, Farlex Inc.

subdued

adjective
2. hushed, soft, quiet, whispered, murmured, muted, muffled, inaudible, indistinct The conversation around them was resumed, but in subdued tones.
hushed loud, strident
3. dim, soft, subtle, muted, shaded, low-key, understated, toned down, unobtrusive The lighting was subdued.
dim bright
Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

subdued

adjective
1. Not irritating, strident, or loud:
2. Not showy or obtrusive:
The American Heritage® Roget's Thesaurus. Copyright © 2013, 2014 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
خافِت، هادئ
tlumenýzaražený
dæmpetforknyt
dauflegur, daufur
hafifsuskun ve neşesiz

subdued

[səbˈdjuːd] ADJ [colours, light, lighting] → tenue, suave; [voice] → suave; [mood] → apagado; [person] (= quiet) → apagado; (= passive) → sumiso, manso; (= depressed) → deprimido
you were very subdued last nightanoche se te veía muy apagado
Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

subdued

[səbˈdjuːd] adj
(= unusually quiet) [person] → abattu(e); [mood, atmosphere] → morose
(= not loud) [conversation, tones] → feutré(e)
(= not bright) [light] → tamisé(e), feutré(e); [colour] → passé(e)sub-editor [ˌsʌbˈɛdɪtər] n (British)secrétaire mf de rédaction, secrétaire mf de la rédaction
Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

subdued

adj (= quiet) colour, lighting, voice, responsegedämpft; manner, personruhig, still; mood, atmospheregedrückt; (= submissive) voice, manner, personfügsam, gehorsam, gefügig; (= repressed) feelings, excitementunterdrückt; lunch was a subdued affairdie Stimmung während des Mittagessens war gedrückt
Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

subdued

[səbˈdjuːd] adj (person, downcast) → giù di morale; (emotions) → contenuto/a; (voice, tone) → sommesso/a; (colours) → tenue; (lighting) → soffuso/a
he's rather subdued these days → ultimamente non è allegro come al solito
Collins Italian Dictionary 1st Edition © HarperCollins Publishers 1995

subdue

(səbˈdjuː) verb
to conquer, overcome or bring under control. After months of fighting the rebels were subdued.someter; dominar
subˈdued adjective
quiet; not bright or lively. subdued voices; He seems subdued today.baja; apagado
Kernerman English Multilingual Dictionary © 2006-2013 K Dictionaries Ltd.
References in classic literature ?
A half-hour later, the Lion, thoughtfully picking his teeth with his claws, told the Rattlesnake that he had never in all his varied experience in being subdued, seen a subduer try so earnestly to give it up.
His silky white hair flows over his shoulders; he looks at us with faded blue eyes; he bows with a sad and subdued courtesy, and says, in the simplest manner, "I bid you welcome, gentlemen, to my house."
"But he seems dreadfully grown-up and subdued now."
Levin could not believe his ears, but there could be no doubt; the scream had ceased and he heard a subdued stir and bustle, and hurried breathing, and her voice, gasping, alive, tender, and blissful, uttered softly, "It's over!"
Even Tertius, that most perverse of men, was always subdued in the long-run: events had been obstinate, but still Rosamond would have said now, as she did before her marriage, that she never gave up what she had set her mind on.
There is a mellow richness, a subdued color, in the old pictures, which is to the eye what muffled and mellowed sound is to the ear.
'Tis said that when The hands of men Tamed this primeval wood, And hoary trees with groans of woe, Like warriors by an unknown foe, Were in their strength subdued, The virgin Earth Gave instant birth To springs that ne'er did flow That in the sun Did rivulets run, And all around rare flowers did blow The wild rose pale Perfumed the gale And the queenly lily adown the dale(Whom the sun and the dew And the winds did woo), With the gourd and the grape luxuriant grew.
Then we gazed round us at the high, thin window of old stained glass, the oak panelling, the stags' heads, the coats of arms upon the walls, all dim and sombre in the subdued light of the central lamp.
"My nature is subdued To what it works in, like the dyer's hand: Pity me, then, and wish I were renewed!"
Cecilia arrived before the breakfast-table was cleared; as lovely, as gentle, as affectionate as ever--but looking unusually serious and subdued.
Its original form, which has been but slightly modified, was that of the tail of a subdued dog, and it was not a letter but a character, standing for a Latin verb,
They were now very subdued and silent, conversing almost in whispers, and stealing in and out with a soft and stealthy tread, very different from the boisterous trampling in which their arrivals and departures had hitherto been announced to the trembling captives.