subvene

S1U1B3V4E1N1E1

verb

To arrive or happen so as to help or support.

OriginLatin subveniō →
Scrabble 12
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Meanings

verbsubvene (third-person singular simple present subvenes, present participle subvening, simple past and past participle subvened)

present singular third person subvenes · participle present subvening · participle past subvened · past subvened

  1. intransitiveTo arrive or happen so as to help or support.

    A future state must needs subvene to prevent the whole edifice from falling into ruin.

    1738–1741, William Warburton, The Divine Legation of Moses […], volume (please specify |volume=I, II.1, or II.2), London: […] Fletcher Gyles, […], →OCLC
  2. raretransitiveTo subsidize or defray.

Origin

  1. Latinsubveniō“come to the aid of”
  2. Englishsubvene

From Latin subveniō (“come to the aid of”), from sub (“under, up towards”) + veniō (“come”).

More words from Latin

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

subvene. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/subvene

MLA

“subvene.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/subvene. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “subvene,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/subvene.

Source: subvene on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.