Meanings
adjectivesubsidiary (comparative more subsidiary, superlative most subsidiary)
comparative more subsidiary · superlative most subsidiary
- Auxiliary or supplemental.
chief ruler and principal head everywhere, not suffragant and subsidiary
1603, Michel de Montaigne, translated by John Florio, Essays1 more example
They constituted a useful subsidiary testimony of another state of existence.
May 1, 1823, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Difference between stories of dreams and ghosts […] - Secondary or subordinate.
a subsidiary stream
1 more example
By one o'clock the place was choc-a-bloc. […] The restaurant was packed, and the promenade between the two main courts and the subsidiary courts was thronged with healthy-looking youngish people, drawn to the Mecca of tennis from all parts of the country.
1935, George Goodchild, chapter 5, in Death on the Centre Court - Of or relating to a subsidy.
subsidiary payments to an ally
1 more example
George the Second relied on his subsidiary treaties.
1836-1853, Philip Stanhope, 5th Earl Stanhope, History of England from the Peace of Utrecht to the Peace of Versailles, 1713-1783
nounsubsidiary (plural subsidiaries)
plural subsidiaries
- A company owned by a parent company or a holding company, also called daughter company or sister company.
- entertainmentA subordinate theme.
- One who aids or supplies; an assistant.
Synonyms & antonyms
adjectivefunctioning in a supporting capacity
nounan assistant subject to the authority or control of another
nouna company that is completely controlled by another company
Similar
subsidiary company
Broader
Also see
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Latinsubsidiarius“belonging to a reserve”
- Middle Frenchsubsidiaire
- Englishsubsidiary
From Middle French subsidiaire, from Latin subsidiarius (“belonging to a reserve”).
More words from Middle French, Latin
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Bulgarian помощен, спомагателен
- помощен (pomošten)auxiliary or supplemental
- спомагателен (spomagatelen)auxiliary or supplemental
- помощен (pomošten)secondary or subordinate
- субсидиен (subsidien)of or relating to a subsidy
- дъщерна компания (dăšterna kompanija)company owned by a parent company or a holding company
- филиал (filial)company owned by a parent company or a holding company
Catalan filial
- filialcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
Chinese Mandarin 子公司
- 子公司 (zǐgōngsī)company owned by a parent company or a holding company
Czech dceřiná společnost, dceřiný podnik
- dceřiná společnostcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
- dceřiný podnikcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
Danish hjælpe-, subsidiær
- hjælpe-auxiliary or supplemental
- subsidiærauxiliary or supplemental
- datter-secondary or subordinate
- datterselskabcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
Dutch dochterbedrijf, filiaal
- dochterbedrijfcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
- filiaalcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
- dochterondernemingcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
Finnish lisä-, täydentävä
- lisä-auxiliary or supplemental
- täydentäväauxiliary or supplemental
- sivu-secondary or subordinate
- toissijainensecondary or subordinate
- avustus-of or relating to a subsidy
- apu-of or relating to a subsidy
- tuki-of or relating to a subsidy
- tytäryhtiöcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
French subsidiaire, secondaire
- subsidiaireauxiliary or supplemental
- secondairesecondary or subordinate
- subsidiaireof or relating to a subsidy
- filialecompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
German ergänzend, nebensächlich
- ergänzendauxiliary or supplemental
- nebensächlichauxiliary or supplemental
- Tochter-secondary or subordinate
- subsidiärsecondary or subordinate
- untergeordnetsecondary or subordinate
- nachgeordnetsecondary or subordinate
- unterstützendof or relating to a subsidy
- Tochterunternehmencompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
- Tochtergesellschaftcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
- Tochterfirmacompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
- Tochtercompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
- Zweigunternehmencompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
- Zweigniederlassungcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
Greek επικουρικός, βοηθητικός
- επικουρικός (epikourikós)auxiliary or supplemental
- βοηθητικός (voïthitikós)auxiliary or supplemental
- δευτερεύων (defterévon)secondary or subordinate
- θυγατρική εταιρία (thygatrikí etairía)company owned by a parent company or a holding company
- παράρτημα (parártima)company owned by a parent company or a holding company
Hindi समनुषंगी
- समनुषंगी (samnuṣaṅgī)company owned by a parent company or a holding company
Hungarian járulékos, kiegészítő
- járulékosauxiliary or supplemental
- kiegészítőauxiliary or supplemental
- kisegítőauxiliary or supplemental
- al-secondary or subordinate
- mellék-secondary or subordinate
- támogatási célú/jellegűof or relating to a subsidy
- leányvállalatcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
- fiókcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
Icelandic dótturfyrirtæki
- dótturfyrirtækicompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
Irish fochomhlacht
- fochomhlachtcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
Italian filiale
- filialecompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
Japanese 子会社
- 子会社 (kogaisha)company owned by a parent company or a holding company
Norwegian subsidiær, datterselskap
- subsidiærauxiliary or supplemental
- datterselskapcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
Polish spółka zależna
- spółka zależnacompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
Portuguese subsidiário, subsidiária
- subsidiárioauxiliary or supplemental
- subsidiáriaauxiliary or supplemental
- subsidiáriosecondary or subordinate
- subsidiárioof or relating to a subsidy
- filialcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
- subsidiáriacompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
Romanian subsidiar, subsidiar
- subsidiarauxiliary or supplemental
- subsidiarsecondary or subordinate
- companie subsidiarăcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
- subsidiarăcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
Russian вспомога́тельный, дополни́тельный
- вспомога́тельный (vspomogátelʹnyj)auxiliary or supplemental
- дополни́тельный (dopolnítelʹnyj)auxiliary or supplemental
- второстепенный (vtorostepennyj)secondary or subordinate
- дочерняя компа́ния (dočernjaja kompánija)company owned by a parent company or a holding company
- до́чка (dóčka)company owned by a parent company or a holding company
Spanish filial, subsidiaria
- filialcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
- subsidiariacompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
- sucursalcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
Swedish subsidiär, dotterbolag
- subsidiärauxiliary or supplemental
- dotterbolagcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
Tagalog kubsamahan
- kubsamahancompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
Turkish iştirakî, tâbî
- iştirakîauxiliary or supplemental
- tâbîauxiliary or supplemental
- yanauxiliary or supplemental
- ikincilsecondary or subordinate
- tâlîsecondary or subordinate
- bağlı kuruluşcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
- bağlı şirketcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
- tâbî şirketcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
- yavru şirketcompany owned by a parent company or a holding company
Welsh atodol
- atodolauxiliary or supplemental
Cite this entry
APA
subsidiary. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/subsidiary
MLA
“subsidiary.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/subsidiary. Accessed November 3, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “subsidiary,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/subsidiary.
Source: subsidiary on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.