subsume

/səbˈsjuːm/

//səbˈsjuːm// verb

By · According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA) ·

"subsume" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“subsume” is uncommon English (frequency #98,767 among 6,566 “S” headwords), classed as a verb. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

#98,767
frequency rank, English
6,566
“S” headwords

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - To place (any one cognition) under another as belonging to it; to include or contain something else.

Corpus desk

Index EN-subsume · subsume · English

subsume · rank #98,767 · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-RARE #98,767
  • LEN-LONG 7 letters
  • VOW-3 3 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-DENSE 6,566
  • PHOTO-FINISH subsector

Nearest frequency peer: subsector (-1 rank slots)

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Long-tail ranks near “subsume”

Sparse band: bars invert rank so rarer forms read shorter

corpus weight

What this shows Long-tail view: where “subsume” sits against similarly uncommon English ranks.

Source FrequencyWords open word-frequency list As of September 3, 2026
Key facts for subsume
PropertyValue
Headwordsubsume
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechVerb
IPA/səbˈsjuːm/
Letters7
Frequency rank#98,767
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “subsume” in English

Every-word frequency runs from the handful of words we use constantly (left) to the long tail used once in a blue moon (right).subsumefalls in this rarity band:

#1#100#1K#10K#100K
← used constantlyrarely used →

Scale is logarithmic (each tick is 10× rarer). Rare peers in the same band: “subsector” (#98,766), “Sudha” (#98,768), “sublimity” (#98,765). Among 6,566 “S” headwords, “subsume” is #98,767. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

subsume is uncommon English at frequency #98,767 among 6,566 “S” headwords, classed as averb, transcribed /səbˈsjuːm/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. 2 senses are on record.

No generated misspelling entries exist for subsume in our index, since its letter sequence doesn't invite the usual edit-distance slips. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, since its spelling is unusual enough that it doesn't cluster with a lookalike.

Etymologically, the entry records: Learned borrowing from Medieval Latin subsūmere, from sub- + sūmō (“I take”). Compare English consume. The correct English form is subsume, spelled S-U-B-S-U-M-E.

Definition

  1. 1
    To place (any one cognition) under another as belonging to it; to include or contain something else.
  2. 2
    To consider an occurrence as part of a principle or rule.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how subsume appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. Near-synonym: comprise
  2. March 14, 2018, Roger Penrose writing in The Guardian, Mind over matter': Stephen Hawking – obituary A few years later (in a paper published by the Royal Society in 1970, by which time Hawking had become a fellow “for distinction in science” of Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge), he and I joined forces to publish an even more powerful theorem which su…

Etymology

Learned borrowing from Medieval Latin subsūmere, from sub- + sūmō (“I take”). Compare English consume.

This word in other languages

subsumir(Español)subsumer(Français)einordnen(Deutsch)classificar(Português)

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "subsume"?
"subsume" is spelled S-U-B-S-U-M-E. The IPA pronunciation is /səbˈsjuːm/.
What does "subsume" mean?
As a verb, "subsume" means: To place (any one cognition) under another as belonging to it; to include or contain something else.
How do you pronounce "subsume"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "subsume" is /səbˈsjuːm/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "subsume"?
Learned borrowing from Medieval Latin subsūmere, from sub- + sūmō (“I take”). Compare English consume. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Similar English words by spelling shape

Same letter count and similar misspelling depth for "subsume", not the corpus desk frequency band.

Same letter count

Frequency-ranked English headwords with 7 letters (nearest by frequency rank).

storify#98,756that've#98,793Soloway#98,740topknot#98,810

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list