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Since jugus means "yoke" in Latin, subjugate means literally "bring under the yoke". Farmers control oxen by means of a heavy wooden yoke over their shoulders. In ancient Rome, conquered soldiers, stripped of their uniforms, might actually be forced to pass under an ox yoke as a sign of submission to the Roman victors. Even without an actual yoke, what happens to a population that has come under the control of another can be every bit as humiliating. In dozens of countries throughout the world, ethnic minorities are denied basic rights and view themselves as subjugated by their country's government, army, and police.
Examples of subjugate in a Sentence
Essence, 19 June 2025
Barry offers audiences entry into a sinister world driven by greed, power and the desire to subjugate others.
—Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 15 May 2025
Russia launched an all-out attack on Ukraine, for the purpose of ruining and subjugating it.
—Jay Nordlinger, National Review, 18 Feb. 2025
The series is set in Gilead, a totalitarian society in what used to be part of the United States, where women are brutally subjugated.
—Kairi Lowery, The Orlando Sentinel, 14 June 2025
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Cite this Entry
“Subjugate.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/subjugate. Accessed 24 Jul. 2025.
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subjugate
verb
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