subservient | subservience
Exam frequency
GRE
high
Banks
high
Civil Services
high
Meaning(s)
overly willing to do what others want
How to Memorize
subservient - submissive
Analysis
To be ‘subservient’ is to always do what others want you to do. It is a sign of weakness and powerlessness as it implies that you are willing to sacrifice your own interests or hide your true feelings about something in order to please somebody else. The word has negative connotations and is often associated with shame or a lack of respect.
| Exams | Spoken | Other | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Synonyms | subordinate,compliant | ||
| Antonyms | assertive,domineering,adamant |
Example(s)
Tom won’t meet up with us without getting permission from his wife first. He’s very subservient to her.
Brian is not liked or respected by anyone in the office due to his subservience to upper management. He’s really quite shameless about it.
It’s not fair that the rights of the workers are being made subservient to the interests of the company. We deserve to have our voice heard.