I. sub 1 /sʌb/ BrE AmE noun [countable] informal
1 . a ↑ submarine
2 . a ↑ substitute in sports such as football
3 . a ↑ subscription
4 . British English part of your wages that you receive earlier than usual because you need money SYN advance
5 . American English a long bread roll, split open and filled with meat, cheese etc
6 . American English a ↑ substitute teacher
7 . British English a ↑ sub-editor
II. sub 2 BrE AmE verb ( past tense and past participle subbed , present participle subbing ) informal
1 . [intransitive] to act as a ↑ substitute for someone
sub for
Roy’s subbing for Chris in tonight’s game.
2 . [transitive] British English to give someone part of their wages earlier than usual or lend them money:
I subbed Fenella a tenner to get a decent bunch of flowers.
3 . [transitive] British English to ↑ subedit something
III. sub ‧ ma ‧ rine 1 /ˈsʌbməriːn, ˌsʌbməˈriːn/ BrE AmE ( also sub ) noun [countable]
a ship, especially a military one, that can stay under water:
a nuclear submarine
• • •
THESAURUS
■ military ships
▪ warship a military ship with guns, used in a war
▪ battleship the largest type of ship used in war, with very big guns on it
▪ aircraft carrier a military ship that planes can fly from or land on
▪ destroyer a small fast military ship with guns, often used for protecting battleships
▪ gunboat a small fast ship with guns on it, often used in shallow water near a coast
▪ submarine a military ship that can stay under water:
a nuclear submarine
▪ minesweeper a military ship used for removing bombs from under water
IV. ˌsubstitute ˈteacher BrE AmE ( also substitute , sub informal ) noun [countable]
American English a teacher who teaches a class when the usual teacher is ill SYN supply teacher British English