| Noun | 1. | substitute - a person or thing that takes or can take the place of anotherequivalent - a person or thing equal to another in value or measure or force or effect or significance etc; "send two dollars or the equivalent in stamps" ersatz - an artificial or inferior substitute or imitation successor - a thing or person that immediately replaces something or someone succedaneum - (medicine) something that can be used as a substitute (especially any medicine that may be taken in place of another) | |
| 2. | substitute - an athlete who plays only when another member of the team drops outbench - the reserve players on a team; "our team has a strong bench" pinch hitter - (baseball) a substitute for the regular batter | |
| 3. | substitute - someone who takes the place of another (as when things get dangerous or difficult); "the star had a stand-in for dangerous scenes"; "we need extra employees for summer fill-ins"locum, locum tenens - someone (physician or clergyman) who substitutes temporarily for another member of the same profession stunt man, stunt woman, double - a stand-in for movie stars to perform dangerous stunts; "his first job in Hollywood was as a double for Clark Gable" | |
| Verb | 1. | substitute - put in the place of another; switch seemingly equivalent items; "the con artist replaced the original with a fake Rembrandt"; "substitute regular milk with fat-free milk"shift - move and exchange for another; "shift the date for our class reunion" exchange, interchange, change - give to, and receive from, one another; "Would you change places with me?"; "We have been exchanging letters for a year" reduce - simplify the form of a mathematical equation of expression by substituting one term for another retool - provide (a workshop or factory) with new tools subrogate - substitue one creditor for another, as in the case where an insurance company sues the person who caused an accident for the insured | |
| 2. | substitute - be a substitute; "The young teacher had to substitute for the sick colleague"; "The skim milk substitutes for cream--we are on a strict diet"exchange, interchange, change - give to, and receive from, one another; "Would you change places with me?"; "We have been exchanging letters for a year" | |
| 3. | substitute - act as a substitute; "She stood in for the soprano who suffered from a cold"cover - help out by taking someone's place and temporarily assuming his responsibilities; "She is covering for our secretary who is ill this week" supersede, supervene upon, supplant, replace - take the place or move into the position of; "Smith replaced Miller as CEO after Miller left"; "the computer has supplanted the slide rule"; "Mary replaced Susan as the team's captain and the highest-ranked player in the school" | |
| Adj. | 1. | substitute - being a replacement or substitute for a regular member of a teamsecondary - of second rank or importance or value; not direct or immediate; "the stone will be hauled to a secondary crusher"; "a secondary source"; "a secondary issue"; "secondary streams" | |
| 2. | substitute - capable of substituting in any of several positions on a team; "a utility infielder"secondary - of second rank or importance or value; not direct or immediate; "the stone will be hauled to a secondary crusher"; "a secondary source"; "a secondary issue"; "secondary streams" | |
| 3. | substitute - artificial and inferior; "ersatz coffee"; "substitute coffee"artificial, unreal - contrived by art rather than nature; "artificial flowers"; "artificial flavoring"; "an artificial diamond"; "artificial fibers"; "artificial sweeteners" | |