Etymologically
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substitution

This is the current revision of this entry, as edited by bogdan on 31 October 2026 at 15:50. This address is a permanent link to this version.
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Pronunciation

  • UK: /ˌsʌb.stɪˈtʃuː.ʃən/, /ˌsʌb.stɪˈtjuː.ʃən/[1]
  • US: /ˌsʌb.stɪˈtu.ʃən/[1]

Etymology

It is inherited from Middle English substitucion,[2][3] borrowed from Middle French substitution, also substitucion,[4][3] and directly borrowed from Latin substitūtiō (“a putting in place of another”),[4][2] which Etymonline, Merriam-Webster and the Shorter Oxford call Late Latin.[2][3][5] The French word is recorded from 1378, for the appointment of a deputy, and earlier, once in Old French, as sustitution.[4] The Latin noun is formed from the past participial stem of substituō (“to put in place of another”), with the suffix -iō;[4][3] the verb is from sub- (“under”) and statuō (“to set up”),[2][6][7] from Proto-Indo-European *sta- (“to stand, make or be firm”).[2] Related forms are Old Occitan sustitussion (1371), Catalan substitució, Spanish sustitución, Portuguese substituição and Italian sostituzione.[4]

Earliest recorded meaning

The appointment of a deputy or delegate: before 1393, in Gower's Confessio Amantis.[4] Etymonline gives the late 14th century and the sense "appointment of a subordinate or successor".[2]

Semantic evolution

The first sense, delegation of authority, was obsolete by the end of the 17th century.[4][5] From 1567 the word was a legal term for naming a person to inherit if the first heir named dies or fails a condition, a sense the Latin noun already had in Roman law.[4][3] The general sense, putting one person or thing in place of another, is recorded from 1572,[4] although Etymonline dates it only to 1888.[2] Johnson (1755) defined it as "the act of placing any person or thing in the room of another".[8] Specialized senses followed: in theology a sacrifice standing for a person (1669), in mathematics the replacing of a term by an equal one (1694, or by 1710 in Etymonline),[4][2] in grammar the use of one word for another (by 1728, now obsolete),[2] in law the putting of one creditor in place of another (1803), in sport the replacing of a player (1828), and in trade the selling of a cheaper product in place of the one asked for (1856).[4]

Timeline

  • before 1393 – appointment of a deputy or delegate (obsolete by 1692).[4]
  • 1567 – law, the naming of a substitute heir.[4]
  • 1572 – the putting of one person or thing in place of another.[4]
  • 1590 – law, the naming of a substitute executor (obsolete by 1883).[4]
  • 1669 – theology, a sacrifice standing in place of a person.[4]
  • 1694 – mathematics, replacing a term by an equivalent one.[4]
  • 1728 – grammar, the use of one word for another (obsolete).[2]
  • 1755 – Johnson: placing a person or thing in the room of another.[8]
  • 1803 – law, putting one creditor in place of another.[4]
  • 1828 – sport, the replacement of one player by another.[4]
  • 1856 – the selling of an inferior product in place of the one asked for.[4]
  • 1876 – of vowel sounds.[2]

Meanings

Noun

  1. The act of putting one person or thing in place of another, or the state of being put there: the substitution of honey for sugar in the recipe.[9][3][4]
  2. A person or thing used in place of another; a substitute.[9]
  3. In sport, the replacement of one player by another during a game.[4]
  4. (mathematics) The replacement of a term in an expression or equation by another of the same value.[9][4]
  5. (logic) The uniform replacement of one expression by another.[9]
  6. (law) The naming of a person to inherit if the heir first named cannot take the inheritance.[3][4]
  7. The selling of a cheaper product in place of the one a buyer asked for.[4]
  8. (obsolete, 1393–1692) The appointment of a deputy or successor.[4][5]

Word family

  • substitutional
  • substitutionally
  • substitutionary
  • nonsubstitution
  • substitution cipher
  • substitution reaction

References

  1. ^ a b Wiktionary, the free dictionary, https://en.wiktionary.org
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Harper, Douglas. Online Etymology Dictionary, https://www.etymonline.com
  3. ^ a b c d e f g Merriam-Webster Unabridged Dictionary (2024), online ed., Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster
  4. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z Oxford English Dictionary Online (accessed March 2026), Oxford: Oxford University Press
  5. ^ a b c Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles (2002), 5th ed., ed. William R. Trumble and Angus Stevenson, Oxford: Oxford University Press
  6. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language (online 2024), 5th ed., Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
  7. ^ Klein, Ernest. A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the English Language. 2 vols. Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1966–1967.
  8. ^ a b Johnson, Samuel (1755), A Dictionary of the English Language, London; 4th ed. 1773; Johnson's Dictionary Online, ed. Beth Rapp Young et al.
  9. ^ a b c d Collins English Dictionary (2023), Glasgow: HarperCollins