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subaltern

Pronunciation: /ˈsʌb.əltən/

The English word “subaltern” has 6 meanings listed here.

adjective

  1. Of a lower rank or position; inferior or secondary; especially (military) ranking as a junior officer, below the rank of captain.
  2. Asserting only a part of what is asserted in a related proposition.

noun

  1. A subordinate.
  2. A commissioned officer having a rank below that of captain; a lieutenant or second lieutenant.
  3. A subaltern proposition; a proposition implied by a universal proposition.
  4. A member of a group that is socially, politically and geographically outside of the hegemonic power structure of the colony and of the colonial homeland.

Etymology

From Middle French subalterne, from Late Latin subalternus, from Latin sub- + alternus, from alter.

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Definitions are from Wiktionary, extracted by Kaikki.org, and are available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.