SUBDUE
tame, chasten, subdue
(verb) correct by punishment or discipline
suppress, stamp down, subdue, conquer
(verb) bring under control by force or authority; “suppress a nascent uprising”; “stamp down on littering”; “conquer one’s desires”
subordinate, subdue
(verb) make subordinate, dependent, or subservient; “Our wishes have to be subordinated to that of our ruler”
overcome, get over, subdue, surmount, master
(verb) get on top of; deal with successfully; “He overcame his shyness”
mortify, subdue, crucify
(verb) hold within limits and control; “subdue one’s appetites”; “mortify the flesh”
repress, quash, keep down, subdue, subjugate, reduce
(verb) put down by force or intimidation; “The government quashes any attempt of an uprising”; “China keeps down her dissidents very efficiently”; “The rich landowners subjugated the peasants working the land”
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Etymology
Verb
subdue (third-person singular simple present subdues, present participle subduing, simple past and past participle subdued)
To overcome, quieten, or bring under control.
To bring (a country) under control by force.
Synonyms
• underbring
Source: Wiktionary
Sub*due", v. t. [imp. & p. p. Subdued; p. pr. & vb. n. Subduing.]
Etym: [OE. soduen, OF. sosduire to seduce, L. subtus below (fr. sub
under) + ducere to lead. See Duke, and cf. Subduct.]
1. To bring under; to conquer by force or the exertion of superior
power, and bring into permanent subjection; to reduce under dominion;
to vanquish.
I will subdue all thine enemies. 1 Chron. xvii. 10.
2. To overpower so as to disable from further resistance; to crush.
Nothing could have subdued nature To such a lowness, but his unkind
daughters. Shak.
If aught . . . were worthy to subdue The soul of man. Milton.
3. To destroy the force of; to overcome; as, medicines subdue a
fever.
4. To render submissive; to bring under command; to reduce to
mildness or obedience; to tame; as, to subdue a stubborn child; to
subdue the temper or passions.
5. To overcome, as by persuasion or other mild means; as, to subdue
opposition by argument or entreaties.
6. To reduce to tenderness; to melt; to soften; as, to subdue
ferocity by tears.
7. To make mellow; to break, as land; also, to destroy, as weeds.
8. To reduce the intensity or degree of; to tone down; to soften; as,
to subdue the brilliancy of colors.
Syn.
– To conquer; overpower; overcome; surmount; vanquish. See Conquer.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition