subscribev.
/səbˈskrʌɪb/, U.S. /səbˈskraɪb/ I. To signify consent, agreement, acknowledgement, commitment, etc.† 4. † 5. transitive. With complement.
1.
a. transitive. To put one's signature or other identifying mark upon (a document), esp. at the end or foot, typically to signify consent or agreement, or to declare that one is a witness; to signify assent to or compliance with (something), by signing one's name; to attest (a particular viewpoint or position) by one's signature.Formerly often more fully as to subscribe with one's (own) hand, to subscribe with a name (also names).In quot. 1847 figurative.
ΘΚΠ
society > law > legal document > [verb (transitive)] > subscribe to
subscribe1415
subscrive1445
underwrite1609
the mind > language > statement > ratification or confirmation > confirm or ratify [verb (transitive)] > by signing one's name
subscribe1415
sign1579
underwrite1609
signature1766
society > communication > indication > that which identifies or distinguishes > personal identification > signature > sign (a document) [verb (transitive)] > sign one's name
seta1400
to set toa1400
subscribe1415
subscribe1426
subscrive1445
firm1528
sign1599
1415 in T. Rymer Fœdera (1709) IX. 293 This is my last Will, subscribed with my own Hand, R.H.
1427–8 Rolls of Parl.: Henry VI (Electronic ed.) Parl. Oct. 1427 §26. m. 5 We knowe no powar nor auctorite þat ye have..consideryng þe open declaracioun..subscribed pureli and simply by my said lord of Bedford, and by you.
1450–1 Rolls of Parl.: Henry VI (Electronic ed.) Parl. Nov. 1450 §17. m. 6 That the seide lettres patentes so subscribed with the names, be enrolled.
a1529 J. Skelton Magnyfycence (?1530) sig. Eiiiv With his hande I made hym to subscrybe A byll of recorde for an annuall rent.
1562 tr. J. Jewel Apol. Church Eng. f. 59 For it is written in thende of that councel after this sorte, Petr' Marcellinus, Felix, Liberius..haue subscribed their consent.
1579 W. Wilkinson Confut. Familye of Loue Brief Descr. sig. iv Their doctrine subscribed with his owne hand is this.
1611 J. Speed Hist. Great Brit. ix. xiii. 609/1 [He] reades the Instrument of his surrender..and..subscribes it with his hand.
1651 N. Bacon Contin. Hist. Disc. Govt. 9 He causeth the Judges to Subscribe this Order, and so it becomes Law in repute.
1704 W. Nicolson London Diaries 18 Nov. (1985) 229 Mr Provost subscribed the Articles, and took the Oaths of Allegiance and Canonical Obedience.
1781 E. Gibbon Decline & Fall (1787) II. xix. 128 The emperor was persuaded to subscribe the condemnation of..Gallus.
1806 W. Cruise Digest Laws Eng. Real Prop. VI. 61 He subscribed the will as a witness in the same room.
1843 W. E. Gladstone in Foreign & Colonial Q. Rev. Oct. 552 On behalf of truth, we subscribe the protest against these preposterous impositions.
1847 T. De Quincey Spanish Mil. Nun viii, in Wks. (1853) III. 17 Chance is but the pseudonyme of God for those particular cases which he does not choose to subscribe openly with his own sign manual.
1888 Q. Rev. 167 209 At Oxford the matriculator subscribed the Thirty-nine Articles.
1955 Househ. Guide & Almanac (News of World) 220/1 Two witnesses must attest and subscribe the will.
1961 P. Collinson in D. T. Bindoff et al. Elizabethan Govt. & Soc. v. 148 The whole clergy were required to subscribe their assent to the Royal Supremacy.
2009 C. M. Booker Past Convictions v. 188 Having confirmed and subscribed the statement himself, he handed his confession to the bishops.
b. transitive. To write (one's name or mark) on a document, esp. at the end or bottom, typically as a witness or consenting party; to sign (one's name) to.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > indication > that which identifies or distinguishes > personal identification > signature > sign (a document) [verb (transitive)] > sign one's name
seta1400
to set toa1400
subscribe1415
subscribe1426
subscrive1445
firm1528
sign1599
1426 Rolls of Parl.: Henry VI (Electronic ed.) Parl. Feb. 1426 §12. m. 3 In witnesse of whiche þing,..my said lord of Glouc' hath subscribed his name with his owne hand. H. Gloucestr'.
1458 in A. Clark Lincoln Diocese Documents (1914) 112 (MED) In wittenesse wherof ichon of vs to this bill haue subscribed his name.
?1510 T. More tr. G. F. Pico della Mirandola Lyfe I. Picus sig. a.iv Which questions..not a few famous doctours..had approued..and subscribed their names vndre them.
1511 in H. Ellis Orig. Lett. Eng. Hist. (1827) 2nd Ser. I. 182 That every gentilman answerer doo subscribe his name to the Articles.
1643 Declar. Commons conc. Rebellion in Ireland 49 The marke of Christopher Hassall is subscribed.
1676 Office Clerk of Assize B vij Then must the Clerk of Assize direct the Cryer to call the Witnesses as they be subscribed to the Indictment.
1716 J. Perry State of Russia (title page) Seuerall moderne Writers whose names are subscribed to their seuerall workes.
1766 W. Blackstone Comm. Laws Eng. II. 377 They must all subscribe their names as witnesses.
1797 A. Radcliffe Italian II. vi. 217 Vivaldi was ordered to subscribe his name and quality to the depositions.
1816 W. Scott Old Mortality vii, in Tales of my Landlord 1st Ser. IV. 126 Subscribe your name in the record.
1917 E. T. Tomlinson Jack Stone of Tait School xxvi. 250 You are the head or chief officer of the organization, I understand, and accordingly I will ask you to subscribe your name first.
1948 W. S. Churchill Second World War (1985) I. x. 152 It was announced on June 27 that over eleven million persons had subscribed their names affirmatively to this [ballot].
2003 Philadelphia Inquirer (Nexis) 3 July a1 Thirty-seven others follow him [sc. George Washington], subscribing their names to the four-page parchment Constitution.
c. intransitive. To write one's signature; esp. to put one's signature to (or †unto) something as an indication of assent, approval, or testimony; to sign one's name as a witness, etc. (In early use also transitive (reflexive) in same sense.)
ΘΚΠ
society > law > legal document > [verb (transitive)] > confirm by seal, stamp, or signature
subscribe?c1444
firm1510
society > communication > indication > that which identifies or distinguishes > personal identification > signature > sign [verb (intransitive)]
subscribe?c1444
subscrive1445
firm1528
subsign1581
sign1600
?c1444 in H. Nicolas Proc. & Ordinances Privy Council (1837) VI. 317 (MED) Of any lorde of his Counsaill or othir or any man aboute his persone..be immediat labor or to the Kyng for þexpedicion of any bille for an othir persone, that he subscribe himselfe in the said bille.
1535 Bible (Coverdale) Isa. xliv. A The thirde shal subscrybe with his honde vnto ye Lorde.
1549 T. Cooper Lanquet's Epitome of Crons. iii. f. 133 Causyng hym..to subscribe to a byll, in the whiche was desyred the perpetuall bondage of his wife Eudoxia.
1560 J. Daus tr. J. Sleidane Commentaries f. cxl This was the effect therof whereunto subscribed sixe and twenty Cardinalles.
c1590 Sir Thomas More (1911) iv. ii. 74 [1235] His maiestie hath sent by me these articles..to be subscribed to.
1611 M. Smith in Bible (King James) Transl. Pref. ⁋11 They could not with good conscience subscribe to the Communion booke.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Antony & Cleopatra (1623) iv. v. 14 Write to him, (I will subscribe) gentle adieu's, and greetings. View more context for this quotation
1691 A. Wood Athenæ Oxonienses I. 104 In 1546 he proceeded in Divinity, having about that time subscribed to the 34 Articles.
a1722 J. Lauder Decisions (1759) I. 12 Unless there be two Notaries, and..he gave them command to subscribe for him.
1724 J. Swift Let. to Molesworth 12 Many of those who Subscribed against me.
1756 Compl. Let.-writer (ed. 2) iii. xviii. 107 I dare not subscribe to this Letter, lest it should fall into Hands that may possibly expose it.
1807 Parl. Reg. II. 379 He found that five of the persons subscribing to the petition were not in Lancaster at the time of the election.
1897 A. Lebon Mod. France i. 28 The Nonjurant priests who would not subscribe to the Civil Constitution of the Clergy were deprived of their salaries.
1909 Eng. Hist. Rev. Apr. 242 Raignolds conformed, but in a vigorous..letter to Bancroft refused to subscribe.
1963 D. Floyd Mao against Khrushchev v. 54 The Yugoslav delegates..refused to subscribe to the Declaration, seeing in it no doubt a weapon to beat them with.
2003 J. W. Sweet Bodies Politic ix. 375 The respectable citizens who subscribed to the petition proposed that the best way to solve the problem would be [etc.].
d. transitive. More generally: to write, set down, or inscribe below or at the conclusion of something. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > writing > written text > layout > [verb (transitive)] > below
underwritec1430
subscribe1534
undername1632
subscript1916
1534 G. Ferrers tr. Bk. Magna Carta f. 17 The clause subscribed shalbe put in a wryt of comon somons.
1579 L. Digges & T. Digges Stratioticos i. iii. 3 Beginne your collection from the right hand to the lefte..& what Digit resulteth, subscribe.
1611 T. Coryate Crudities sig. G5v A goodly statue.., with an honourable Elogium subscribed vnderneath the same.
1657 J. Watts Scribe, Pharisee iii. 101 I shall take my leave, and subscribe a friendly farewel to you.
1702 V. Mandey tr. J. J. Hainlin Synopsis Mathematica: Theoret. Arithm. i. 17 The Remainer being subscribed under the line drawn.
1778 Ann. Reg. 1777 239 His picture..with the words, ‘The Atheist Parson’, subscribed in capitals.
1817 J. Leslie Philos. Arithm. 11 By subscribing an ióta or short dash under any character, its value was augmented a thousand fold.
1841 Punch 20 Nov. 225/1 In the space left for the degree of attention which the student has shown, it is better that he subscribes nothing at all than an indifferent report.
1964 Arch. Internal Med. 113 450 He [sc. Bach] was accustomed to subscribe at the end of a work the words: ‘Soli Deo Gloria’.
2009 L. Shepherd Clarissa's Painter iii. 76 They created such a uniform style..that without the legend subscribed beneath the images it can be hard to distinguish one's work from the other's.
e. transitive. With complement.
(a) In passive. Esp. of a letter: to conclude with the specified name, valedictory formula, etc.; to be signed in the specified manner. Also more generally: to be furnished with the specified text as an inscription beneath or at the bottom.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > indication > that which identifies or distinguishes > personal identification > signature > be signed [verb (passive)]
sign?1483
subscribe1562
subsign1754
1562 tr. Duc de Guise et al. Requestes vnto Frenche Kinge sig. Avi Subscribed. Frauncis of Lorrayne, De Montmorency. S. Andre.
a1627 J. Hankyn in Proc. Suffolk Inst. Archaeol. (1874) 4 188 In the same Chappell there is another monument subscribed as followeth:—Hic jacet Katerina de Tendering.
1640 in J. Rushworth Hist. Coll.: Third Pt. (1692) I. 114 Fourteen Letters subscribed, W. Cant.
1688 R. Holme Acad. Armory iii. ii. 33/2 An Escochion..Subscribed, Moneta Nova Ordin. Frisiæ.
1725 London Gaz. No. 6349/1 A Letter subscribed W. Baker.
1780 Mirror No. 84 A letter subscribed Censor.
1820 J. Haslewood in Brathwait's Barnabæ Itinerarium (new ed.) I. 357 Beneath the title, in another small oval, is a portrait subscribed Quanquam ô.
1847 Eclectic Mag. July 342/2 We could point out several letters, subscribed ‘your truest friend and lover’, although written by one gentleman to another.
1952 J. Symons Thomas Carlyle xiii. 202 When Peel abolished the Corn Laws Carlyle sent him a copy of Cromwell with a letter, subscribed ‘Your obliged fellow-citizen and obedient servant’.
1992 S. S. Prawer Israel at Vanity Fair viii. 296 We must surely imagine Rebecca to be one of the imperilled maidens rescued by a parfit gentle knight in the illustration subscribed ‘J.J. in Dreamland’.
(b) reflexive. To sign oneself in the specified manner at the foot of a document; esp. as a formulaic valediction at the end of a letter. Now somewhat archaic.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > indication > that which identifies or distinguishes > personal identification > signature > sign [verb (reflexive)]
subscribe1603
sign1726
1603 Lady A. Stuart Let. 6 Nov. (1994) 189 They [sc. swollen eyes] may boldly crave a cessation for this time onely performing..theyr office whilest I subscribe my selfe such as I am.
1613 Bp. W. Cowper Let. 25 Nov. in Dikaiologie (1614) 173 It is a shame for you, who in the end of your Treatise subscribes your selfe Philalethes, that you should proue Pseustes in the very beginning.
1711 R. Steele Spectator No. 27. ⁋7 I am almost asham'd to Subscribe my self Yours, T. D.
1780 Mirror No. 81 A lady who subscribed herself S. M.
c1820 in Corr. J. Sinclair (1831) II. 400 Allow me to..subscribe myself..your obedient, humble servant, J. R. Brancaleoni.
1846 O. W. Holmes in R. W. Griswold Passages from Corr. (1898) 221 Avoiding..the pretentious boldness of John Hancock..I subscribe myself Yours very truly.
1913 J. Galsworthy Dark Flower i. xi. 55 Just as he had not known how to address her, so he could not tell how to subscribe himself, and only put ‘Mark Lennan’.
1931 Crisis Aug. 284/1 I am proud to subscribe myself as your friend of olden times—and now.
2007 P. Kingman Not yet Drown'd xxii. 367 You must forgive me if I assert the right..to subscribe myself, dear Mrs MacDonald, your most devoted friend in this world, Pieter Fleming.
2.
a. intransitive. With to (or †unto). To declare or consider oneself to be in agreement with a statement, opinion, proposal, theory, or the like; to express one's agreement, concurrence, or acquiescence.Also in prepositional passive.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > statement > assent > [verb (intransitive)]
ensentc1290
accordc1300
to say yesa1400
senta1400
to say yeac1425
condescend1477
subscribe1531
accede1534
to take a person at his (also her) word1535
homologatea1649
to close with1654
to set one's seal1659
yes1820
yea-say1876
1531 tr. E. Fox et al. Determinations Moste Famous Vniuersities ii. f. 38v There be decrees of other counsailes and aunswers in writynge of other of the Popes, whiche do subscrybe and agree to these foresayde determinations.
?1544 tr. J. Calvin in Two Epyst. sig. a.v The same that other men wolde ether deny or wyncke at, stonde I at no dowbte to affyrme, namelye, that I vtterlie do not subscribe vnto ther opinyon.
1594 W. Shakespeare Titus Andronicus iv. ii. 129 Aduise thee Aron, what is to be done, And we will all subscribe to thy aduise.
1614 W. Raleigh Hist. World i. ii. viii. §1. 362 The Thracians againe subscribe to none of these reports.
1643 Sir T. Browne Religio Medici (authorized ed.) ii. §3. 143 The Foundations of Religion are already established, and the principles of Salvation subscribed unto by all. View more context for this quotation
1699 R. Bentley Diss. Epist. Phalaris (new ed.) 67 Clement's Computation is subscribed to..by Cyril.
1710 A. Pope Let. 20 July in Corr. (1956) I. 92 I do not expect you shou'd subscribe to my private notions.
1765 Museum Rusticum 4 121 If they do not implicitly subscribe to his condemnation of other botanists.
1771 T. Smollett Humphry Clinker II. 200 She enters into her scheme of oeconomy..and..subscribes implicitly to her system of devotion.
1823 W. Scott Quentin Durward I. Introd. p. xx I am contented to subscribe to the opinion of the best qualified judge of our time.
1878 H. M. Stanley Through Dark Continent II. xi. 315 They readily subscribed to all the requirements of friendship.
1908 Bull. Illinois State Board of Health Jan. 7 The views of the State Board of Health..are not subscribed to by a number of sanitarians.
1949 K. Clark Landscape into Art iv. 54 The ideal concept to which every artist and writer on art subscribed.
1988 B. W. Aldiss Forgotten Life iv. 73 We subscribe to the idea that it is wrong to murder or steal.
2008 Nature 4 Dec. 545/1 Hogan has rejected the dissident line, subscribed to by both her predecessor and Mbeki, that AIDS is not caused by HIV.
b. intransitive. To agree or be a party to (also †unto) a course of action or state of affairs; to give approval, sanction, or countenance to.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > esteem > approval or sanction > approve [verb (intransitive)]
allow?c1550
subscribe1553
regard1621
1553 in tr. S. Gardiner De Vera Obediencia: Oration Transl. to Rdr. sig. Avii It is not long sence D. Chadsey subscribed to the mariage of priestes.
a1570 in A. Feuillerat Documents Office of Revels Queen Elizabeth (1908) 407 He having ben required..to consent and subscribe to thaccomptes and reckoninges of the Revelles.
1596 T. Lodge Wits Miserie 68 The nobility amongst the Iewes..would subscribe to no election or superioritie.
1597 T. Beard Theatre Gods Iudgements ii. xxvii. 344 A certaine Cardinall committed daily Adulterie with a mans wife, that winked & as it were subscribed vnto it.
1610 G. Carleton Iurisdict. vii. 97 None of the Cardinals subscribed to his election.
a1656 R. Vines Gods Drawing (1662) 282 When we can willingly subscribe to the course that God hath taken to save our souls.
1728 W. Webster tr. L. Maimbourg Hist. Arianism I. iv. 193 It is a much less crime to condemn a man upon a false accusation, than to subscribe to a manifest impiety.
1783 W. Gordon tr. Livy Rom. Hist. I. ii. xlv. 172 That the enemy should pass unpunished they could by no means subscribe to.
1825 W. Hazlitt Spirit of Age 173 The reverend divine might submit to the obligation, but he has no occasion to subscribe to the jest.
1920 L. Marković tr. V. Kuhne in Serbia & Europe iv. 228 It is not only the rulers who think and act thus, the whole Bulgarian people is unfortunately sanctioning their designs and subscribing to their actions!
2009 S. A. Meier Themes & Transformations Old Test. Prophecy xv. 190 Elisha's servant, Gehazi, finds it difficult to subscribe to his master's abstemious behavior.
c. transitive. To indicate one's assent to or compliance with; to countenance, support, favour, sanction, concur in. Also with that-clause as object. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > statement > assent > [verb (transitive)]
cordc1380
to give handsa1425
to fall to ——a1450
agree1472
to go into ——1540
astipulate1548
subscribe1560
seal1579
suffragate1606
give1621
assent1637
homologate1644
to take up with1673
affirmative1775
chorus1836
yea-say1887
yes1915
the world > action or operation > easiness > aid, help, or assistance > support > support or backing > support, side with, or back [verb (transitive)]
werea1300
to be abouta1400
support?a1439
to go with ——a1475
outbear1530
follow1548
subscribe1560
second1596
suffrage1614
to wait on ——1639
subjoin1810
suffrage1838
1560 J. Daus tr. J. Sleidane Commentaries f. xij Manye do subscribe, and myghtye Nations maynteine the cause.
?1570 T. Drant Two Serm. sig. E.viii I doubt not but you will subscribe that this church of Rome is a most sinfull woman.
1574 A. Golding tr. A. Marlorat Catholike Expos. Reuelation 15 They agree to the opinion of other men, and subscribe their sayings.
1609 W. Shakespeare Troilus & Cressida ii. iii. 146 Aiax... Doe you not thinke he thinkes himselfe a better man then I am? Agam. No question. Aiax. Will you subscribe his thought, and say he is. View more context for this quotation
1709 J. Johnson Clergy-man's Vade Mecum: Pt. II 194 They that used evasion, and did not right down subscribe the abnegation.
1781 E. Gibbon Decline & Fall (1787) III. xxxvi. 494 Orestes..chose rather to encounter the rage of an armed multitude, than to subscribe the ruin of an innocent people.
1840 Relig. Monitor June 63 Neither would we subscribe the idea, that it would be the duty of all our present ordained ministers to give up their respective charges, and embark for heathen lands.
1880 Christian Life 14 Aug. 81/3 All who yet love the name of Christ, who..heartily subscribe that the love of God and man is the essence of Christianity.
1969 B. T. Matthias in P. R. Wallace Superconductivity I. 253 While I wouldn't usually subscribe that the end justifies the means, as far as superconductivity and metallurgy are concerned, I think it does.
2003 M. Giuliani in K. Featherstone & C. M. Radaelli Politics of Europeanization vi. 136 Even without subscribing the idea of some sort of Pareto supremacy of consensualism, it is possible to argue that [etc.].
3. † b. intransitive. To give or acknowledge allegiance to a person; to make one's submission to; (more generally) to submit, yield, give in. Obsolete.† c. transitive. Apparently: to yield up, sign away. Obsolete. rare.† e. intransitive. To acknowledge oneself to be in the wrong; to admit one's inferiority or error. Obsolete.
a. intransitive. To submit or subject oneself to a law or the rule of law; to conform or defer to a person's will or wishes, a requirement, etc.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > subjection > obedience > submissiveness > submission > submit [verb (intransitive)]
onboweOE
bowa1000
abeyc1300
yielda1330
loutc1330
couchc1386
to come to a person's mercy?a1400
to do (also put) oneself in (also to) a person's mercya1400
hielda1400
underlouta1400
foldc1400
to come (also to put oneself) in a person's willc1405
subjectc1475
defer1479
avale1484
to come in1485
submita1525
submita1525
stoop1530
subscribe1556
compromit1590
warpa1592
to yield (also bow oneself) to (also upon) mercy1595
to come in will to a person1596
lead1607
knuckle1735
snool1786
1556 J. Ponet Shorte Treat. Politike Power sig. D viiv Thomas Cranmer..did what he might to resiste to subscribe to King Edwardes will, wherby his two sisters..should haue ben wrongfully disherited.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Taming of Shrew (1623) i. i. 81 Sir, to your pleasure humbly I subscribe . View more context for this quotation
1621 T. W. tr. S. Goulart Wise Vieillard 119 To subscribe and submit himselfe to all his Statutes and Lawes.
1642 J. March Argument Militia 10 The will of the King, ought to subscribe to the Law.
1768 H. Brooke Fool of Quality III. xvi. 269 I would make a..narrative to my child of all that had passed, but..would wholly subscribe to her pleasure.
1791 tr. Cardinal de Rohan in tr. Comtesse de La Motte Life I. 428 I am bound to subscribe to the will of my master.
1840 Ann. Propag. Faith 1 461 That multitude of Christians, who have had the weakness to subscribe to the will of the prince, and trample under foot the sacred symbol of their salvation.
1893 R. A. Gregory Elem. Physical & Astron. Geogr. (ed. 4) xviii. 287 Man, like the lower animals, has had so far to subscribe to the law of the survival of the fittest.
1925 Forestry Kaimin (Forestry Club, Montana State Univ.) May 44 They [sc. public officials] must in some way be made to subscribe to the will of the majority.
1998 B. S. Feiler Dreaming out Loud (2002) 245 Those artists refused to subscribe to the mainstream demands that country radio imposes.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > difficulty > opposition > absence of resistance > offer no resistance [verb (intransitive)] > give in
descend?a1400
to give up the girdlea1400
submita1525
to give over1530
subscribe1560
yield1576
come1607
to give in1616
to give the stoop1623
buckle1642
incumb1656
to knock under board, under (the) table1692
capitulate1714
to strike underc1730
knuckle down1735
cave1844
to throw (also chuck) up the sponge1860
incline1866
to give (it) best1878
give way1879
to roll over1919
the world > action or operation > difficulty > opposition > absence of resistance > accept without resistance [verb (transitive)] > give in or submit to action, treatment, or events
undergoc1175
give place1382
receivec1384
obeyc1390
to go under ——a1400
servec1400
underliec1400
submitc1425
subscribe1560
resign1593
stoop1611
to let loose1667
to qualify on1753
1560 J. Daus tr. J. Sleidane Commentaries vi. f. lxxviv Forgettyng the wealth of their countrey, they subscribed to Ferdinando kyng of Boheme.
1590 R. Greene Neuer too Late ii. sig. Fv That he whom loue and errour did betray, Subscribes to thee [i.e. Reason].
1591 Troublesome Raigne Iohn i. sig. F4v Subscribe not Hubert, giue not Gods part away.
1609 W. Shakespeare Sonnets cvii. sig. G3 Death to me subscribes, Since spight of him Ile liue in this poore rime.
1631 F. Quarles Hist. Samson 37 Passion replies, That feare and filiall duty Must serve affection, and subscribe to beauty.
a1652 R. Brome City Wit iv. i. sig. D8, in Five New Playes (1653) As for..Corantoes,..I speak it not swellingly, but I subscribe to no man.
1727 tr. Plutarch Lives V. 342 They could not but acknowledge and subscribe to Him, as one of a more piercing Judgment in Matters of Prudence and Morality than Themselves.
1851 R. Hussey Rise Papal Power ii. 76 Anatolius required the Illyrian Bishops to subscribe to him, that is, profess canonical obedience.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > relinquishing > relinquish or give up [verb (transitive)] > by signing
subsign1605
subscribe1608
to sign away1689
1608 W. Shakespeare King Lear ii. 23 Kent banisht thus, and France in choller parted, and the King gone to night, subscribd [1623 Prescrib'd] his power, confined to exhibition.
d. intransitive. With to (or †unto). To make acknowledgement or admission of something; to admit or concede the force, validity, or truth of something.In later use often hardly distinguishable from sense 2a.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > statement > acknowledgement, avowal, or confession > acknowledge, avow, or confess [verb (intransitive)]
to be beknowna1300
acknowc1300
knowledgec1384
knowa1400
confess1587
subscribea1616
own1772
testify1785
the mind > language > statement > acceptance, reception, or admission > accept, receive, or admit [verb (intransitive)]
subscribea1616
to take (also get, catch) a point1898
a1616 W. Shakespeare Two Gentlemen of Verona (1623) v. iv. 143 I..Plead a new state in thy vn-riual'd merit, To which I thus subscribe . View more context for this quotation
a1616 W. Shakespeare All's Well that ends Well (1623) v. iii. 97 When I had subscrib'd To mine owne fortune, and inform'd her fully. View more context for this quotation
a1623 C. Heydon Astrol. Disc. (1650) xiii. 51 They cannot but subscribe unto his [sc. Mercury's] virtue in cold effects.
a1648 W. Percy Faery Pastorall (1824) i. i. 98 I could Produce those abuses that daily be Comitt in Eluida that in the end you would with shame subscribe to your error.
1753 S. Richardson Hist. Sir Charles Grandison I. xx One to whose superior merit, and to whose good fortune, I can subscribe.
1771 O. Goldsmith Hist. Eng. I. Pref. p. vi I must warmly subscribe to the learning..of Mr. Hume's history.
1796 R. Bage Hermsprong III. xiv. 123 I subscribe to the wit and truth of this, as I do of most of your lordship's general remarks.
1838 E. Bulwer-Lytton Alice I. i. xii. 107 They have confided to me all the reasons for your departure, and I cannot but subscribe to their justice.
1883 Canada Lancet July 347/2 We are not prepared to subscribe to the wisdom of the Association's decision on this question.
1904 H. Paul Hist. Mod. Eng. II. x. 242 The Government could neither admit the force of M. Thouvenel's reasons, nor subscribe to the justice of his principles.
1997 J. Daverio Robert Schumann 392 Scholars may disagree over the number of Beethoven's style periods..but they generally subscribe to the usefulness and validity of some sort of periodic division.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > statement > acknowledgement, avowal, or confession > acknowledge, avow, or confess [verb (intransitive)] > admit one's inferiority or error
subscribea1616
society > communication > manifestation > disclosure or revelation > disclose or make revelations [verb (intransitive)] > reveal one's true character > confess
subscribea1616
confess to1771
own1772
admit1830
to make a clean breast of1838
fess1840
to own up1844
to spit it out1855
to make a clean breast of it1878
cough1901
to come clean1919
to spill one's guts (out)1927
tell papa1929
a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 2 (1623) iii. i. 38 Which feare, if better Reasons can supplant, I will subscribe; and say I wrong'd the Duke. View more context for this quotation
a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 1 (1623) ii. iv. 44 If I haue fewest, I subscribe in silence. View more context for this quotation
1630 H. Lynde Via Devia xi. 324 Let him proue the poynt in question, that al those Sacraments were instituted by Christ in the new Testament..and I will subscribe.
a. transitive. With that-clause as object. To enter into an undertaking to do or bring about something. Also with infinitive, and (occasionally) intransitive. Obsolete.
ΚΠ
1566 in H. Ellis Orig. Lett. Eng. Hist. (1824) 1st Ser. II. 217 The Quene..wyll that all men that ar frends to anye of those that were previe to David deathe shall subscribe to pursue them... Some have subscribed, other have refused.
a1604 M. Hanmer Chron. Ireland 32 in J. Ware Two Hist. Ireland (1633) They..yeelded to subscribe, that..they would not receive any Scot into their dominions.
1651 Offertory Funerals E. Popham (broadside) All Brittain must Subscribe to be th'Exchequer of His Dust.
1767 F. Warner Hist. Rebellion & Civil-war Ireland iii. 139 The committee..reported that the Mayor and Aldermen unanimously voted the lending money; which they would presently pay, or subscribe to do it in a short time.
b. intransitive. To make an undertaking for, to vouch or answer for a person. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > speech > agreement > security > give assurance or stand surety [verb (intransitive)]
to lay one's life, head, to wed971
to find (take) God, Mahoun, St. Blase, St. George, etc. to borrowa1330
again-behotea1382
to make (also do) faitha1382
pledge1458
to make (also give) warrantisea1535
undertake1548
subscribe1600
underwrite1623
seal1633
underwritea1657
hedge1676
vouch1687
to stand surety (or security)1776
to take warrant on oneself1828
stipulate1829
1600 W. Shakespeare Much Ado about Nothing i. i. 39 He..challengde Cupid at the Flight, and my vncles foole reading the chalenge subscribde for Cupid. View more context for this quotation
a1616 W. Shakespeare All's Well that ends Well (1623) iii. vi. 83 I know th 'art valiant, And to the possibility of thy souldiership, Will subscribe for thee. View more context for this quotation
a. To declare or consider (a person) to be what is specified; = to set down 8a at set v.1 Phrasal verbs 2. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > attention and judgement > judgement or decision > evaluation, estimation, appraisal > appraise, estimate [verb (transitive)] > consider to be, account as
telleOE
talec897
seeOE
letc1000
holdc1200
reckon1340
aima1382
accounta1387
counta1387
judgec1390
takea1400
countc1400
receivec1400
existimatec1430
to look on ——?c1430
makec1440
reputea1449
suppose1474
treatc1485
determinea1513
recount?c1525
esteem1526
believe1533
estimate?1533
ascribe1535
consider1539
regard1547
count1553
to look upon ——1553
take1561
reck1567
eye?1593
censure1597
subscribe1600
perhibit1613
behold1642
resent1642
attributea1657
fancy1662
vogue1675
decount1762
to put down1788
to set down1798
rate1854
have1867
mean1878
1600 W. Shakespeare Much Ado about Nothing v. ii. 53 Claudio vndergoes my challenge, and either I must shortly heare from him, or I will subscribe him a coward. View more context for this quotation
1611 W. Vaughan Spirit of Detraction iv. viii. 150 Ye must conioyne, as with one mouth or Oracle, to subscribe him guilty.
1665 R. Brathwait Captive-captain 44 This self-conceipted Pharisee stands in needs of a Scribe, to supply his defects; having nothing to subscribe him great, saving an illegible mould of dis-joynted Letters.
1782 J. Elphinston tr. Martial Epigrams lxxi. 241 Numa subscribes me heir: and sleeps—to life.
b. reflexive. Also intransitive in same sense. Obsolete. rare.
ΚΠ
1641 J. Milton Reason Church-govt. 41 Perceaving..that he who would take Orders must subscibe [sic] slave, and take an oath withall.
1666 T. Watson Godly Mans Picture iv. 105 David, though a King, yet looked upon himself as a worm... Bradford a Martyr, yet subscribes himself a sinner.
1668 T. Watson Doctr. Repentance iv. 36 Confession is a means to humble the soul: He that subscribes himself an Hell-deserving sinner, will have little heart to be proud.
II. To undertake to contribute to a cause, publication, etc.† 6. intransitive. With for. To give an undertaking to provide a specified amount of money, usually as one of a number of individuals doing so collectively in order to raise funds for a particular purpose; to participate in a public subscription. Also (occasionally) transitive: to put (a person) down for a specified amount. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > payment > contribution > contribute [verb (transitive)] > subscribe
subscribe1597
subscribe1640
subscrive1696
the mind > language > speech > agreement > promise > promise or vow [verb (transitive)] > bind by a promise > put a person down for so much
subscribe1597
1597 W. Shakespeare Richard II i. iv. 47 Blanke charters, Whereto, when they shal know what men are rich, They shal subscribe them for large summes of gold. View more context for this quotation
1625 tr. Disc. West-India Co. in tr. True Relation Fleete vnder Iaquis Le Hermite 25 Diuers rich persons..haue either subscribed for small sums, or haue not done it at all.
1655 H. L'Estrange Reign King Charles 167 The Lords told him they would engage their own credits, and the Lord Deputy of Ireland, giving the onset, subscribed for twenty thousand pounds.
1721 J. Swift Let. to King at Arms in Wks. (1765) XIII. 229 Things are a little low with me at present, by throwing my whole fortune into the Bank, having subscribed for five hundred pounds sterling.
7. transitive. To take a share in (a joint-stock undertaking); to take up (stock, shares, etc.); to underwrite (a loan).
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > stocks and shares > deal in stocks and shares [verb (transitive)] > specific operations
subscribe1618
to take up1655
to sell out1721
to take in1721
to take up1740
pool?1780
capitalize1797
put1814
feed1818
to vote (the) stock (or shares)1819
corner1836
to sell short1852
promote1853
recapitalize1856
refund1857
float1865
water1865
margin1870
unload1870
acquire1877
maintain1881
syndicate1882
scalp1886
pyramid1888
underwrite1889
oversubscribe1891
joint-stock1894
wash1895
write1908
mark1911
split1927
marry1931
stag1935
unwind1958
short1959
preplace1966
unitize1970
bed and breakfast1974
index-link1974
warehouse1977
daisy-chain1979
strip1981
greenmail1984
pull1986
1618 G. Ball Let. 7 Jan. in S. Purchas Pilgrimes (1625) I. v. ix. 672 A second ioynt Stocke, subscribed for twentie hundred thousand pounds.
1677 R. Ferguson East-India-trade 17 Books were laid open for all persons in the Nation to subscribe what Stock they pleased to adventure in the said Trade.
1711 D. Defoe Ess. South-Sea Trade 35 Happy would be the Day that the Stock was subscrib'd, happy the Thought that laid the Scheme.
1750 A. Hooke Ess. National Debt 48 That..the Capital Annuity..[be divided] into four thousand lesser Annuities..vested in the Individuals of each Class, in proportion to the Number of Shares subscribed by them.
1838 Trav. Minna & Godfrey xxvi. 281 The person subscribing the loan had the privilege of sending in the inhabitants of these three dwellings.
1899 J. J. Rahill Corporation Accounting & Corporation Law 65 When the stock is all subscribed the stock account will balance.
1911 E. P. Moxley Accounting Syst. v. 60 The law provides that the books for subscription must be kept open until the full amount of capital stock specified is subscribed.
1960 C. P. Roland Confederacy iii. 47 The administration adopted an expedient to induce the planters to subscribe the second loan.
1996 S. J. Ericson Sound of Whistle v. 363 The government guaranteed a return of 6 percent for fifteen years on the shares subscribed by private investors.
8.
a. transitive. To give an undertaking to provide (an amount of money) for a particular purpose; to give (money) by public subscription.
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > payment > contribution > contribute [verb (transitive)] > subscribe
subscribe1597
subscribe1640
subscrive1696
1640 Act 16 Chas. I c. 37 §1 Diverse great summes of money have beene subscribed some part whereof is already paid in.
1655 S. Clarke Christian Good-fellowship sig. A2 Mr. John Howkins..subscribed fourscore pounds, towards the placing of poor boies born in Rugbie, Apprentices in London.
1681 C. Mather Diary 12 Mar. in Coll. Mass. Hist. Soc. (1911) 7th Ser. VII. 5 The People..did about this Time subscribe about Seventy Pounds, for my Encouragement, in my public Service the ensuing year.
1761 T. Mortimer Every Man his own Broker iv. 137 Receipts are made out and delivered to the subscribers, for the several sums by them subscribed.
1792 J. Almon Anecd. Life W. Pitt (octavo ed.) I. vii. 165 He [sc. Pitt] never subscribed one shilling into the funds.
1856 Ann. Reg. 1855 ii. Chron. 117/2 Nearly 40,000,000l. was subscribed [for the new French loan] in the departments.
1863 H. Fawcett Man. Polit. Econ. i. iv. 42 Indian railways have been constructed by loans subscribed almost entirely in England.
1872 Ann. Reg. 1871 Chron. 113 The large sum of 10,000l. was subscribed at once.
1912 World 7 May 698/2 Over $300,000 was subscribed in Canada for ordinary shares.
1940 R. Graves & A. Hodge Long Week-end v. 77 The Premium Bond Scheme of 1918,..to which his [sc. Horatio Bottomley's] readers subscribed £90,000.
2004 M. Cumming Carlyle Encycl. 226/2 He demonstrates the spiritual bankruptcy of contemporary Britain by lamenting its willingness to subscribe thousands of pounds to erect a statue to George Hudson.
b. transitive. Sport (chiefly Cricket). To contribute or accumulate (an amount of runs, points, etc.). Now rare.
ΚΠ
1870 Sporting Gaz. 3 Sept. 663/3 Mr Gregory joined R. Humphrey, and runs were steadily subscribed.
1891 Standard 27 Mar. 2/5 [He] then subscribed a useful 125, and after 22 by the rearward man ran up a break of 98 unfinished.
1902 Daily Chron. 28 June 9/2 The English team were engaged in an up-hill task against the Colonials, who..subscribed the heavy score of 402.
1947 Times 21 Aug. 6/1 Only 40 runs had been subscribed to South Africa's hard task..when K. G. Viljoen..was stumped.
9.
a. intransitive. Frequently with to. To undertake to contribute money to a fund, society, project, etc.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > language > speech > agreement > promise > promise, vow, or pledge [verb (intransitive)] > to do something specific
to wage deliverance1607
subscribe1642
1642 (title) The names of such Members of the Commons House of Parliament, as have already subscribed in persuance of the Act of Parliament, for the speedy reducing of the rebels, and the future peace and safety of this kingdome..together with the summes they have severally under-written.
?1680 (title) A catalogue of the subscribers names to the English atlas... Moses Pitt doth request that those gentlemen who already have, or any others that are willing to subscribe, will be pleased to send him their names, quality, and place of habitation before the 14th of the said month.
1697 N. Luttrell Diary in Brief Hist. Relation State Affairs (1857) IV. 208 The lords of the treasury..opened the books to take subscriptions for 400,000l. to answer the exchequer bills; those that subscribe are to have..7l. 10s. interest for what they pay in.
1724 B. Mandeville Search Nature of Society in Fable of Bees (ed. 3) 456 By subscribing to a Fund for joyning the Employment of Manufacture to the Business of learning to Read and Write in the Charity-Schools.
1781 W. Cowper Charity 467 Extravagance and av'rice shall subscribe.
1792 in Athenæum (1887) 5 Nov. 604/3 Will you have the Journal de Jacobins? I'll subscribe on your answer.
1836 C. Dickens Pickwick Papers (1837) vii. 66 I subscribe to the club here.
1856 E. T. Hurlstone & J. Gordon Exchequer Rep. XI. 715 Certain persons had subscribed to a steeple chase, to be run in the neighbourhood of Henley.
1904 S. Fitzgerald Naples 213 The festival..has gained greatly in importance of late years, owing to the energy of a town official who encourages the people to subscribe generously.
1912 S. Leacock Sunshine Sketches Little Town i. 22 The uses of philanthropy went further. Mr Smith subscribed to everything, joined everything, gave to everything. He became an Oddfellow, a Forester, a Knight of Pythias and a Workman.
1979 J. T. Story in A. Coren Punch Bk. Short Stories III. 29 We all subscribed to getting him his chromium wheelchair.
2007 N. Scotland Squires in Slums iii. 72 An appeal was sent out to all Christ Church men inviting them to subscribe to a fund for the erection of new and more permanent premises.
b. intransitive. With for. To secure the right to receive shares, a copy of a proposed publication, etc., by making or undertaking to make a payment.Also in prepositional passive.
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > payment > pay [verb (intransitive)] > be responsible for payment
answer1429
subscribe1680
the mind > language > speech > agreement > promise > promise, vow, or pledge [verb (intransitive)] > enter into or pledge oneself
covenantc1440
bind1488
undertake1572
engage1604
pre-engage1652
subscribe1680
1680 N. Grew (title) Whereas a Book Entituled, Musaeum Regalis Societatis..being..now to be Published by the Order of the said Society... Whoever Subscribeth for Six English Copies in Quires, or procureth Subscriptions for so many, shall receive seven such Copies.
1695 Laws & Acts 5th Session 1st Parl. William 19 Providing always, that such Shares as are first Subscribed for, by Scots Men within this Kingdom shal not be alienable to any other than Scots Men living within this Kingdom.
1711 J. Swift Jrnl. to Stella 21 Sept. (1948) I. 364 The maids of honour..are teazing others to subscribe for the book.
1749 J. Wood Ess. Descr. Bath (ed. 2) II. iv. xii. 445 I am well satisfied as many fifty Pound Tickets..would have been Subscribed for.
1829 Lipscomb Buckingham Prospectus Subscribers are..requested to transmit their names..through Messrs. Longman and Co..., by whom the respective Parts will be issued in the order subscribed for.
1890 S. S. Sprigge Methods Publ. 19 When the libraries have subscribed for their copies.
1891 G. H. Stutfield Rules Stock Exchange 106 The loan may be subscribed for in amounts of £100.
1908 Act 8 Edward VII c. 69 §121 For the purposes of this Act the expression ‘private company’ means a company which by its articles—(a) Restricts the right to transfer its shares; and (b) Limits the number of its members..to fifty; and (c) Prohibits any invitation to the public to subscribe for any shares or debentures of the company.
1960 Economist 8 Oct. 187/1 Successive mergers..reduced its proportionate holding. So, too, did the rights issues of ordinary shares, for as an American investor Bendix could not subscribe for the new shares but had to sell its rights.
1983 B. A. K. Rider Insider Trading i. 19 The term ‘securities’ is defined in s. 73 (5) to mean ‘listed securities’ and..would include any shares, any debentures, or any right to subscribe for, call for or make delivery of a share or debenture whether listed or not.
1995 Accountancy Nov. 120/3 It is a condition of income tax relief under the Enterprise Investment Scheme that the shares subscribed for are new equity in an unquoted company.
2000 Adv. Driving (Inst. Adv. Motorists) Summer 39/1 The Institute subscribed for 124,000 new ordinary shares of £1 each at par.
c. intransitive. Chiefly with to (also occasionally for). To pay to receive a number of issues of a newspaper, periodical, etc., esp. in advance.
ΚΠ
1708 Brit. Apollo 7–12 May Gentlemen, I have subscribed for your paper some time, which emboldens me to enter into the list of the querists.
1785 M. Langlois Let. 29 July in Ann. Agric. (1791) 16 221 I subscribe to that periodical publication.
1860 Peterson's Mag. Oct. 317/2 If a lady wishes to subscribe for only one magazine, this is, on the whole, the best and cheapest for her.
1899 Perry Mag. June 202/2 You will receive the October number, but not the September number, if you subscribed when the magazine was published only once in two months.
1930 Oxf. Ann. Girls 147/1 People do subscribe to mags. I'm sick of being broke, Martha.
1981 R. Neely How Courts govern Amer. ii. 24 The people who subscribe to one of these publications usually subscribe as well to at least one more.
2008 N.Y. Times (National ed.) 6 Apr. (Week in Review section) 14/2 I've subscribed to the NY Times since 1989.
d. intransitive. Chiefly with to. To maintain membership of a club or other organization by making regular payments.
ΚΠ
1790 Lady's Mag. Dec. 623/1 He refused last year to subscribe to our club—though the money was only ten guineas.
1845 Proc. Asiatic Soc. Bengal Dec. p. cxxvii Any individual..desirous of subscribing to the Association, shall intimate the same by letter to the Secretary, forwarding the sum of Co.'s Rs. 6—his subscription for the current quarter.
1880 Clergyman's Mag. Dec. 384 Should any who are now members not intend to subscribe for 1881, they would greatly oblige by sending at once a post card to that effect to the Honorary Secretary.
1911 R. W. Kauffman Girl that goes Wrong xiii. 156 Because we could no longer afford to subscribe to the tennis club, I mustn't put myself under obligations to my inferiors by accepting their invitations to play there.
2011 G. W. Miller et al. Exploring Body-mind Centering 175 He learned to kayak, and he subscribed to and used a gym.
e. intransitive. Chiefly with to (also occasionally for). To receive or arrange to receive access to a commercially provided service by making regular payments.
ΚΠ
1871 W. Shaw Sioux City Directory 1871–2 95 Hunt..shall extend said pipes from time to time, whenever the citizens on such extensions shall subscribe for gas.
1898 Electricity 20 Apr. 236/2 Those who subscribe to the rival telephone service.
1910 Motor World 25 Aug. 494/3 [He] has been able to enjoy the benefits of electric lights without bothering to subscribe for local service.
1951 Pop. Sci. Jan. 104/2 Physicians pay about $12 a month to subscribe to the radio paging service.
1989 D. M. Krugman in R. Batra & R. Glazer Cable TV Advertising v. 77 Forty-four percent of the homes passed by cable elect not to subscribe.
2005 D. Maldoom et al. Broadband in Europe ii. 7 The benefits..are likely to increase for many users once they subscribe to broadband.
f. intransitive. Frequently with to. To become a subscriber to an electronic mailing list, newsgroup, etc. Occasionally in imperative, as an email command. Also transitive: to add (a person or his or her details) to a mailing list, newsgroup, etc. Cf. unsubscribe v.Typically no payment is required for subscriptions of this type.
ΚΠ
1981 Writing to ARPAnet Digests in net.news (Usenet newsgroup) 9 June Each system would set up it's [sic] .sys file so that it did NOT subscribe to ‘ta.*’ [sc. a newsgroup].
1994 St. Petersburg (Florida) Times (Nexis) 11 Jan. 4 d Send a message to listservmot.com..and type in body of message: subscribe letterman-top-ten.
1999 S. McDonnell Everything Internet Bk. iii. 87 If you personalize the newsgroup search engine Deja News, it will subscribe you to discussion groups which match your interests.
2008 R. Berkman Art of Strategic Listening xii. 153 Websites usually make it easy to subscribe by providing a one-click function to add its RSS feed.
2009 Billboard 28 Nov. 34/3 I'm not sure that all of those people subscribe to the mailing list or go to their Web site regularly.
10. † a. transitive. To issue (a book) to subscribers. Obsolete. rare.† d. transitive. To publish (a book) by subscription. Obsolete. rare.Probably a misunderstanding of sense 10b; N.E.D. (1914) described the sense as ‘not recognized by the trade’.Apparently only attested in dictionaries or glossaries.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > printing > publishing > publish [verb (transitive)] > issue to subscribers
subscribe1701
subscribe1887
1701 in tr. N. F. de Royaumont Hist. Old & New Test. (ed. 2) sig. Av The Book will be Subscribed at One Pound in Quires, one half down, the other on Delivery; a 7th Book gratis.
b. transitive. Of a publisher or publisher's representative: to offer (a book) to wholesale booksellers for sale by subscription (see subscription n. 8a), generally in advance of publication.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > printing > publishing > publish [verb (transitive)] > offer to trade
subscribe1807
1807 A. Constable Let. 5 Mar. in T. Constable A. Constable & his Lit. Correspondents (1873) I. iii. 96 I peremptorily refused to allow him to subscribe the book to the trade west of Temple bar, because I said Murray was our agent, and must not be interfered with.
1822 J. O. Robinson Let. 31 Jan. in W. Scott Pirate (2001) 420 The Trade are waiting for our Spring Sale they dont like Bks at Subsn and I dont see how we could pretend to subscribe the Book unless as a new editn.
1885 Athenæum 25 July 114/3 Mr. D. Nutt is subscribing an elaborate work..entitled ‘Studies on the Life and Language of the Modern Greek People’.
1913 Early Life Mk. Rutherford 83 My occupation now was to write Chapman's letters,..and, most disagreeable, to ‘subscribe’ his publications, that is to say, to call on booksellers and ask how many copies they would take.
1935 Cornhill Mag. Apr. 453 When a publisher is ‘subscribing’ a new book, his town traveller shows a copy of it to Strand House.
1994 Weekend Times 9 Apr. 15/6 Shrewd reps try to subscribe their new books at the beginning of the month, when the bookseller is still flush.
c. transitive. Of a bookseller: to agree before publication to take copies of (a book); to agree to take (a certain number of copies of a book). Also (in later use chiefly) intransitive with for in the same sense (cf. sense 9b).In quot. 1888 intransitive: (of a book) to be taken up by booksellers on this basis.
ΘΚΠ
society > trade and finance > buying > buy [verb (transitive)] > agree to buy (of bookseller)
subscribe1840
society > trade and finance > buying > buy [verb (intransitive)] > be taken by trade (of books)
subscribe1888
1840 Monthly Chron. Mar. 219 Each publisher submits to the meeting specimens of his forthcoming novelties..and the rest ‘subscribe’ for copies.
1852 Fraser's Mag. June 723/2 When he [sc. a wholesale bookseller] subscribes a book, or issues a sale catalogue.
1873 H. Curwen Hist. Booksellers 428 Of Mr. Disraeli's ‘Lothair’ 1500 copies were at first subscribed.
1887 Athenæum 25 June 833/1 The London trade have subscribed for 10,000 copies, which is said to be the largest number ever subscribed for a six-shilling novel.
1888 ‘J. S. Winter’ Conf. Publisher xii. 87 Dayley's book ‘Memory’ came out. On the whole, it subscribed very well.
1901 Author 1 Apr. 194/2 A traveller said that booksellers would not subscribe the book.
1922 S. Beach Let. 26 June (2010) 97 I always tell them that Adrienne Monnier among other book-sellers subscribed for a good many copies and might have some left.
2010 M. H. Hoeflich Legal Publishing Antebellum Amer. ii. 49 James Rivington..was the leading bookseller in colonial and early republican New York. He subscribed for one hundred copies of the work.
ΘΚΠ
society > communication > printing > publishing > publish [verb (transitive)] > issue to subscribers
subscribe1701
subscribe1887
1887 Cassell's Encycl. Dict. VI. 657/1 Subscribe,..to publish by subscription. [Illustrated by quot. 1885 at sense 8b.]
1895 I. K. Funk et al. Standard Dict. Eng. Lang. II. Subscribe,..to publish by subscription; as, the Longmans are subscribing a new book of art.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2012; most recently modified version published online June 2022).
> see also
also refers to : sub-scriben.
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v.1415see also
- monocistronic
- monocle
- monocled
- monocled cobra
- monocleid
- monocleide
- monocles
- monoclimax
- monoclinal
- monoclinally
- monoclinate
- monocline
- monoclines
- monoclinian
- monoclinic
- monoclinism
- monoclinohedral
- monoclinohedric
- monoclinometric
- monoclinous
- monoclonal
- monoclonal antibodies
- monoclonal antibody
- monoclonality
- monoclonals