Subculture Meaning
/ˈsʌbˌkʌltʃɚ/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
nounA portion of a culture distinguished by its customs or other features, often in contrast to the larger mainstream culture.
nounA culture made by transferring microorganisms from a previous culture to a fresh growth medium
Sentence Examples
The point of hipster subculture is to avoid conforming to societal norms.
Gadesh is a subculture in Azerbaijan.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The punk ____ developed its own unique music and fashion styles in the 1970s.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The heavy metal ____ has its own unique fashion and music that sets its members apart from others.
Word Origin & History
Etymology tree Proto-Indo-European *upó Proto-Italic *supo Latin sub Latin sub-der. English sub- Proto-Indo-European *kʷelh₁- Proto-Indo-European *kʷélh₁-e-ti Proto-Italic *kʷelō Latin colō Proto-Indo-European *-tew-? Proto-Indo-European *-r-eh₂? Latin -tūra Latin cultūrader. Middle French cultureder. English culture English subculture From sub- + culture.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"Like those activities, bodybuilding is an obsession, a living (for a few), and a way of life for the people involved in it—a subculture, in a word, with its own values, aesthetics and vocabulary."
— 1974, Charles Gaines, George Butler, Pumping Iron: The Art and Sport of Bodybuilding, page 7:
"Joybubbles (the legal name of the former Joe Engressia since 1991), a blind genius with perfect pitch who accidentally found he could make free phone calls by whistling tones and went on to play a pivotal role in the 1970s subculture of “phone phreaks,” died on Aug. 8 in Minneapolis."
— 2007 August 20, Douglas Martin, “Joybubbles, 58, Peter Pan of Phone Hackers, Dies”, in The New York Times, archived from the original on 12 Feb 2022:
"White Americans are transitioning toward minority status for the first time. As they do, perhaps their ways will be treated less as the default mainstream, and more as subcultures among subcultures."
— 2014 November 24, Anand Giridharadas, “How to Talk About Race Without Talking About Race”, in The New York Times, →ISSN, archived from the original on 16 Jul 2021:
"White evangelicals once saw themselves “as the owners of mainstream American culture and morality and values,” said Jones. Now they are just another subculture."
— 2021 July 9, Michelle Goldberg, “The Christian Right Is in Decline, and It’s Taking America With It”, in The New York Times, →ISSN, archived from the original on 10 Jul 2021:
"Cultures were subcultured by 20-fold dilution into fresh MS2D medium approximately every 7 d."
— 1990, Heidi F. Kaeppler et al., “Silicon carbide fiber-mediated DNA delivery into plant cells”, in Plant Cell Reports, volume 9, number 8:
Explore More C1 Vocabulary Words
CEFR Practice Quiz
The punk ____ developed its own unique music and fashion styles in the 1970s.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The heavy metal ____ has its own unique fashion and music that sets its members apart from others.