Word
subjective
Phoneticssub·jec·tive, stress on the second syllable
US/səbˈdʒɛktɪv/
UK/sʌbdʒˈɛktɪv/
Definitions
01based on personal opinion
B2 · Upper Intermediate
adj. based on your own feelings and opinions rather than on facts.
adj. pertaining to or characteristic of an individual's personal beliefs, feelings, or tastes rather than external facts.
“The way we judge art is very subjective because everyone has different tastes.”
“The review was highly subjective, focusing more on the critic's personal dislike of the lead actor than on the technical merits of the film.”
Synonyms
02internal experience
C1 · Advanced Philosophy Academic
adj. describing a feeling or experience that happens inside your mind and cannot be seen by others.
adj. relating to the internal mental experience of a subject as opposed to the external world of objects.
“Pain is a subjective experience because only the person feeling it knows how much it hurts.”
“Phenomenology explores the subjective nature of consciousness, prioritising the individual's lived experience over abstract scientific data.”
Synonyms
03grammatical subject
C2 · Proficiency Science Technical
adj. relating to the subject of a sentence (the person or thing doing the action).
adj. relating to the grammatical subject or the nominative case.
“In the sentence 'I saw him', the word 'I' is in the subjective case.”
“The student struggled to distinguish between subjective and objective pronouns when constructing complex relative clauses.”
Usage
In modern linguistics, 'nominative' is more common than 'subjective' for this sense.
Synonyms
Antonyms
04the subjective case
C2 · Proficiency Countable noun Science Technical
n. the form of a noun or pronoun used when it is the subject of a verb.
n. the nominative case or a word in that case.
“The teacher explained that 'he' is the subjective and 'him' is the objective.”
“The analysis of the text required identifying every instance where the subjective was used to emphasise the agency of the protagonist.”
Synonyms
Antonyms
Collocations
Common phrases and expressions where native English speakers use the word “subjective” in context.
Adjective
01. highly subjective
“Art criticism is highly subjective, as different people value different styles.”
adv + adj
02. subjective experience
“The study focuses on the subjective experience of patients living with chronic pain.”
adj + noun
03. subjective measure
“Self-reporting is often considered a subjective measure of a person's happiness.”
adj + noun
04. subjective nature
“Due to the subjective nature of the grading system, students often disagree with their marks.”
adj + noun
05. expenditure subjective
Real-World Examples
“She says “objective evidence” about cell towers was turned into “subjective evidence” by expert witness Dr Matthew Sorell.” “Looking properly has involved going through 11,000 summaries of scientific papers and working through the evidence on biphasic sleep across health, performance, and the subjective experience of shift workers.” Etymology
From subject + -ive.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Word family
NOUN
ADJECTIVE
ADVERB
Domains
- Exam level
- CambridgeCambridgeCambridge English QualificationsThe exam suite from Cambridge University Press & Assessment, from A1 Movers up to C2 Proficiency. The benchmark names double as CEFR labels.B2 FirstIELTSIELTSInternational English Language Testing SystemThe 0–9 band test co-owned by the British Council, IDP, and Cambridge. Used for university entry, work, and migration.5.5–6.5TOEFL iBTTOEFL iBTTest of English as a Foreign Language, Internet-Based TestETS's academic English test, the standard route for US university admissions. Scored 0–120, with a 1–6 scale since 2026.1–6 scale: 4.0–4.572–94TOEICTOEICTest of English for International CommunicationETS's workplace English test, big in Japan and Korea. Listening & Reading scores 10–990 and tops out at C1.785–944
- Frequency
- Frequent
- Level
- B2 · Upper Intermediate
- Updated
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