subvertv.
/səbˈvəːt/, U.S. /səbˈvərt/ a. transitive. To raze (a building, town, etc.) to the ground; to destroy completely. Also intransitive. Obsolete.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > creation > destruction > breaking or cracking > break [verb (transitive)] > break down, demolish, or ruin
spillc950
fellOE
to cast downc1230
destroy1297
to turn up?c1335
to throw down1340
to ding downc1380
to break downa1382
subverta1382
underturn1382
to take downc1384
falla1400
to make (a building, etc.) plain (with the earth)a1400
voida1400
brittenc1400
to burst downc1440
to pull downc1450
pluck1481
tumble1487
wreck1510
defacea1513
confound1523
raze1523
arase1530
to beat downc1540
ruinate1548
demolish1560
plane1562
to shovel down1563
race?1567
ruin1585
rape1597
unwall1598
to bluster down16..
raise1603
level1614
debolish1615
unbuilda1616
to make smooth work of1616
slight1640
to knock down1776
squabash1822
collapse1883
to turn over1897
mash1924
rubble1945
to take apart1978
a1382 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1959) Gen. xix. 29 Whenn forsoþ god hadde subuertid [L. subverteret] þe cyteȝ of þat regyoun.
?a1475 (?a1425) tr. R. Higden Polychron. (Harl. 2261) (1865) I. 127 Subuertenge citees and defilenge holy places.
a1500 ( J. Yonge tr. Secreta Secret. (Rawl.) (1898) 163 The excellent Cite of troy for aye Subuertid and destrued was.
1513 Life Henry V (1911) 117 Some others labored to subuert and ouerthrowe the walls.
?1549 T. Becon Castell of Comforte sig. Dvi By this texte, they thynke they maye do, whatsoeuer pleaseth theym, saue or condemne, bynde or loose, holde vp or cast doune, buylde or subuerte.
1610 P. Holland tr. W. Camden Brit. i. 361 When those more ancient Churches were subverted, Aldred..erected another.
a1616 W. Shakespeare Henry VI, Pt. 1 (1623) ii. iii. 65 These are his substance, sinewes, armes, and strength, With which he..Razeth your Cities, and subuerts your Townes. View more context for this quotation
1665 T. Manley tr. H. Grotius De Rebus Belgicis 255 He easily recovered what ever had been conquered by..Mansfeldt,..and utterly subverted all that was unnecessary.
1724 A. Crossly Signification Most Things in Heraldry 17 The first Bearer of this Beast [sc. the cony], seemed..lucky in undermining and subverting Cities.
1775 R. Chandler Trav. Asia Minor lxxix. 265 Many villages were absorbed, the city Sipylus was subverted, and marshes were changed into lakes.
1850 P. Power tr. M. Orsini Life Blessed Virgin Mary xvi. 255 An alarming quaking of the earth, which subverted twenty towns in Asia.
b. transitive. In figurative context. Obsolete.
ΚΠ
1543 T. Becon New Yeares Gyfte sig. K.iii This one texte..is able to subuerte, ouertople, and throwe downe all the byldynge.
1579 W. Fulke Confut. Treat. N. Sander in D. Heskins Ouerthrowne xi. 636 It is manifest, that worshipping of images, is contrarie to the Lawe of nature. So that you see the foundation of this building already subuerted.
a1677 I. Barrow Of Love of God (1680) 267 To dissolve those sacred bands, by which its union is conteined, and to subvert the onely foundations of publick tranquillity.
1792 E. Burke Corr. (1844) III. 392 They began its destruction by subverting..the foundations of civil society itself.
1834 R. Halley Improved Version Creed 59 The imperishable spirit of the New Covenant..is the mighty weapon which will subvert the strong-holds of Satan.
2.
a. transitive. To overthrow (a nation, government, ruler, etc.); to bring down, depose, put an end to; to defeat, vanquish. Also: to overcome (an ostensibly more powerful force). Now rare except as merged with sense 2c.
ΘΚΠ
the world > existence and causation > creation > destruction > destroy [verb (transitive)] > overthrow or overturn
to-warpc888
overwarpeOE
fallOE
cumber1303
overthrowc1375
overturna1382
subverta1382
overwalta1400
sinka1400
to wend downa1400
tuyrec1400
reverse1402
tirvec1420
pervert?a1425
to put downa1425
cumrayc1425
downthringc1430
overthwart?a1439
thringc1480
subvertise1484
succumb1490
renverse1521
precipitate?1528
everta1538
wrake1570
ruinate1590
profligate1643
wreck1749
a1382 Prefatory Epist. St. Jerome in Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Bodl. 959) (1959) vii. 119 Þe last emong þe foure propheteȝ..before telliþ þe stone beforkutt of þe hyll with outen hondes & all rewmeȝ subuertyng [L. regna omnia subvertentem].
1415 in 43rd Ann. Rep. Deputy Keeper Public Rec. (1882) App. i. 591 in Parl. Papers (C. 3425) XXXVI. 1 Thai wolde subuert this londe.
a1500 tr. A. Chartier Traité de l'Esperance (Rawl.) (1974) 35 (MED) The yghes of God waken ouir the synnes of realmes for to chastice them or to subuerte [Fr. subuertir] them.
1529 T. More Supplyc. Soulys i. f. xiii To make an open insurreccyon and subuerte all the realme.
1535 Bible (Coverdale) Isa. xxxvii. B Thou knowest well, how the kinges of Assiria haue handled all the londes, that they haue subuerted.
1562 T. Sternhold et al. Whole Bk. Psalmes cxlv. 20 But he them all that wicked are, will vtterly subuert.
1610 J. Healey tr. J. L. Vives in tr. St. Augustine Citie of God x. xxi. 389 Hee [sc. Scipio] subdued Africa, and subuerted Haniball.
1667 J. Milton Paradise Lost xii. 568 By things deemd weak Subverting worldly strong. View more context for this quotation
1731 tr. M.-A. de Gomez Belle Assemblée III. 238 Conspiracies carried on,..Commerce neglected, and every thing that could subvert a Monarchy prosecuted with the utmost Vigour.
1797 E. Burke Three Mem. French Affairs 35 The Russian Government is..the most liable to be subverted by military seditions.
1841 M. Elphinstone Hist. India I. iv. i. 403 The inscriptions lead us to think that the dynasty subverted by the Mussulmans was of more recent origin.
1869 W. E. Gladstone Juventus Mundi vi. 156 That the Pelopids did not simply subvert, or succeed to, a prior dynasty, but that they held a new dominion.
1974 J. Huston in Transatlantic Rev. Autumn 143 So these two soldiers go up and they think they'll lead one tribe against another and then they'll subvert the King and become King themselves.
b. transitive. To overturn (an established or existing practice, belief, rule, etc., or a set of these); to change completely (a state of things). Also: to displace, supersede. Also intransitive.
ΘΚΠ
society > authority > lack of subjection > rebelliousness > revolution > make revolutionary in character [verb (transitive)] > overthrow
upturna1340
overturna1382
subvert1474
invert1548
overthrow1567
wrake1570
revolve1609
to pull down1625
overset1679
1474 W. Caxton tr. Game & Playe of Chesse (1883) ii. v. 58 The ministris by theyr pryde and orgueyll subuerte Iustice.
1484 Rolls of Parl.: Richard III (Electronic ed.) Parl. Jan. 1484 §1. m. 3 The ordre of all poletique rule was perverted, the lawes..broken, subverted and contempned.
1530 J. Palsgrave Lesclarcissement 742/2 This cursed opynion, if it may contynewe a whyle, it wyll subvert all good lawes.
1596 E. Spenser Second Pt. Faerie Queene v. ix. sig. T4v After that he..With dreadfull fate Had vtterly subuerted his vnrighteous state. View more context for this quotation
1606 in J. D. Marwick Charters rel. Glasgow (1894) I. ii. 272 The mantenance of the thrie estaittis of parliament hes bene..almost subuertit..by the indirect abolischeing of the estait of bischoppis.
1609 D. Price Sauls Prohibition Staide sig. E3v They [sc. Papists] maintaine, that they may eate their God, kill their king, subuert the Scriptures.
1655 H. L'Estrange Reign King Charles 30 To the end he might..have perverted the Prince, and subverted the true Religion established in England.
1726 tr. J. Cavalier Mem. Wars Cevennes Ded. p. iv Their Civil and Religious Liberties, which after having been artfully underminded by several preceding Princes, were at last totally subverted.
1741 Bp. J. Butler Serm. before House of Lords 20 Nor can this Obligation be denied formally upon any Principles, but such as subvert all other Obligations.
1786 E. Burke Articles of Charge against W. Hastings 354 In order to subvert the plain and natural interpretation given by the Council to the orders of the Court of Directors.
1790 E. Burke Refl. Revol. in France 102 They have a power given to them, like that of the evil principle, to subvert and destroy. View more context for this quotation
1814 W. Wordsworth Excursion ix. 393 Our active powers..become Strong to subvert our noxious qualities. View more context for this quotation
1830 J. F. W. Herschel Prelim. Disc. Study Nat. Philos. iii. v. 338 The strongest chemical affinities were thus readily subverted by the decomposing action of the pile.
1845 H. H. Wilson Hist. Brit. India 1805–35 I. viii. 507 If the constitution of the British Indian empire were subverted, the civil and military services would be broken down.
1861 H. T. Buckle Hist. Civilization Eng. II. iii. 259 James..attempted..to subvert the liberties of Scotland.
1919 G. F. Browne Venerable Bede vi. 105 All rules of truth and justice were so completely subverted that the memory of the existence of such virtues had disappeared.
1994 Times 29 Jan. 16/2 If the apostolic view on this is subverted by the General Synod, then the charge of unapostolic changes may be put.
c. transitive. To undermine without necessarily bringing down (an established authority, system, or institution); to attempt to achieve, esp. by covert action, the weakening or removal of (a government, political regime, etc.).
ΚΠ
1673 R. Baxter Christian Directory iv. 106 It being more in the power of the Governours than of the Subject..to preserve it [sc. Peace]... take heed..of any thing which tendeth to subvert or weaken Government.
1778 R. Robinson in tr. J. Claude Ess. Composition Serm. I. v. 274/1 (note) Jesus Christ and his apostles never attempted to subvert civil government.
1834 Pearl & Lit. Gaz. 1 Feb. 105/1 It may be no easy matter to convince a man that his actions, every day he lives, are tending to subvert those institutions he holds most dear.
1849 T. B. Macaulay Hist. Eng. II. 67 These men addressed themselves to the task of subverting the treasurer's power.
1927 New Republic 12 Oct. 205/2 The rank and file have grown tired of the persistent effort of the Communists to subvert trade-union discipline.
1977 ‘J. le Carré’ Honourable Schoolboy iii. xiv. 306 He..undertook special assignments..to subvert the pernicious influence of K.M.T. Fascist elements.
2010 Atlantic Monthly Sept. 56/1 ‘Foiling operations’ conducted by the intelligence agencies of..Western powers—programs designed to subvert the Iranian nuclear effort through sabotage.
3. † b. transitive. To cause a person to lose (faith, hope, etc.). Obsolete.
a. transitive. To corrupt or pervert (a person, or a person's mind, soul, etc.); to turn (a person) away from a path or belief regarded as right or proper. Also in neutral or positive sense: to transform the beliefs or character of.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > goodness and badness > wrongdoing > corruption > [verb (transitive)]
forbraidc888
besmiteeOE
awemOE
filec1175
soila1250
envenomc1300
beshrewc1325
shrew1338
corrumpa1340
corrupt1382
subvertc1384
tache1390
poison1395
infect?c1400
intoxicatec1450
deprave1482
corrup1483
rust1493
turkess?1521
vitiate1534
prevary?1541
depravate1548
fester?1548
turkish1560
wry1563
taint1573
disalter1579
prevaricate1595
sophisticate1597
invitiate1598
fashion1600
tack1601
debauch1603
deturpate1623
disaltern1635
ulcer1642
deboise1654
Neronize1673
demoralize1794
bedevil1800
society > morality > moral evil > moral or spiritual degeneration > degrading or impairing morally > degrade or impair morally [verb (transitive)] > pervert or deprave
bicharrea1100
crooka1340
subvertc1384
pervertc1425
traverse1438
overthwartc1450
perversec1475
deprave1482
crooken1552
preposterate1566
depravate1847
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) Titus iii. 11 Schonye thou a man heretyk,..witinge for he that is such maner man is subuertid [L. subversus est], and trespassith [MS trespassid].
c1405 (c1390) G. Chaucer Parson's Tale (Ellesmere) (1877) §561 It [sc. wrath] reueth hym the quiete of his herte and subuerteth his soule.
c1480 (a1400) St. Peter 82 in W. M. Metcalfe Legends Saints Sc. Dial. (1896) I. 9 He askit petir, quhar-for he Subuertit men of þat cuntre.
a1529 J. Skelton Why come ye nat to Courte (?1545) 438 That the kynges minde By hym is subverted And so streatly coarted In credensyng his tales.
?1532 T. Elyot tr. Plutarch Educ. Children (new ed.) xiii. sig. F.iiv There is nat lyuynge a thynge more mischeuous than flatterers,..subuertynge the yonge men with pernicious counsayle.
1552 Abp. J. Hamilton Catech. i. vii. f. 20 He yat is siclike is subuertit and synnis.
1599 J. fitz Thomas Let. 14 Mar. in T. Stafford Pacata Hibernia (1633) ii. iii. 144 By their godly perswasions, hee was at that time reclaimed, and subverted to bee a good Catholike.
a1612 W. Fowler Tarantula of Love in Wks. (1914) I. 154 Fair eyes which..dois my saule subvert.
1715 A. A. Sykes Innocency Error 38 If he be subverted, yet 'twill be hard to prove Sin or Self-Condemnation upon a Man.
1760 T. Flloyd Bibliotheca Biographica III. at Xenocrates Finding him not to be wrought upon by presents and interested views, he endeavoured to subvert him by an affected contempt.
1824 J. Hall Expository Disc. Gospels xix. 300 Vain will be all the efforts of the enemy to subvert our souls.
1855 Evangelical Christendom 9 159/1 There resided from two to three hundred Protestants,..and I was grieved to hear of the successful efforts of the [Roman Catholic] priests to subvert them from their faith.
1914 Times 21 Oct. 7/5 These ringleaders..dispose of large means with which they are able to subvert workmen of their country engaged in the dockyard.
1956 W. H. Whyte Organization Man (1957) v. 58 Universal organization training..so effectively emphasises the group spirit that there is little danger that inductees will be subverted into rebelliousness.
2005 Times Colonist (Victoria, Brit. Columbia) (Nexis) 10 Dec. a15 The subtle and insidious attempts of socialism to subvert our youth through the subversive lyrics of John Lennon.
ΘΚΠ
the mind > possession > loss > taking away > take away [verb (transitive)] > deprive (of)
benimc890
to do of ——eOE
bedealc1000
disturbc1230
bereavec1275
reave?a1300
acquitc1300
benemec1300
deprivec1330
privea1382
subvertc1384
oppressc1395
abridgea1400
to bate of, from1399
lessa1400
nakena1400
dischargea1425
privatec1425
to bring outa1450
abatec1450
sever?1507
spulyie?1507
denude1513
disable1529
distrain1530
destituec1540
destitutec1540
defalk1541
to turn out of ——1545
discomfit1548
wipe1549
nude1551
disannul?a1556
bereft1557
diminish1559
benoom1563
joint1573
uncase1583
rid1585
disarm1590
visitc1592
ease1600
dispatch1604
unfurnisha1616
rig1629
retrench1640
unbecomea1641
disentail1641
cashier1690
twin1722
mulct1748
fordo1764
to do out of ——1796
to cut out1815
bate1823
deprivate1832
devoid1878
c1384 Bible (Wycliffite, E.V.) (Douce 369(2)) (1850) 2 Tim. ii. 18 Philete..and Imeneus..felden doun fro the treuthe..and subuertiden [L. subverterunt] the feith of sum men.
a1500 (?a1430) J. Lydgate tr. G. Deguileville Pilgrimage Life Man (Stowe) l. 16471 Yff he contynue in hys malys..to subuerten [L. subuertere] myn hope.
a1500 tr. A. Chartier Traité de l'Esperance (Rawl.) (1974) 89 (MED) Now hath He subuertid [Fr. subuerty] all thy power and vtterly made [voide] thi frustratyue hope.
c. transitive. To corrupt (a moral code, a concept, a person's outlook, etc.); to alter from what is right or proper; (also) to distort (truth). In neutral or positive sense: to transform, change.
ΚΠ
c1425 Bk. Found. St. Bartholomew's (1923) 48 (MED) Thys clennes envied the ennemye of man-kynde, wyllynge to subuerte yn her the purpos of clennes.
c1450 Speculum Christiani (Harl. 6580) (1933) 236 (MED) The vngudly man subuertez, ouerturnez, truth be couetyse that he has.
1528 Rede me & be nott Wrothe sig. G4v Daniel is not yett come Which shall obtayne the roume Their fraudfull wayes to subuerte.
1610 J. Healey tr. St. Augustine Citie of God v. xxvii. 234 Their tongue-ripe Satyrisme may more easily disturbe the truth of this world, then subuert it.
1639 G. Daniel Eclesiasticus in Poems (1878) III. 2 Hee..Promises mountaines, brings thee to his feast, And doth subvert thy Reason, in thy Tast.
1702 C. Mather Magnalia Christi i. v. 21 For the poor Non-Conformists, by their hot pressing of those Indifferencies..utterly subverting the Faith in the important Points.
1775 R. Robinson tr. J. Saurin Serm. II. ii. 38 There are six sophisms..which our age hath brought forth for the purpose of subverting the truth.
1832 Biblical Repertory July 408 Putting principles into circulation, the tendency of which is to subvert all sound morality.
1868 J. S. Preston Virginia 12 Those powers which subvert the works of wisdom, and seek to eradicate the seeds of virtue.
1901 Anglo-Amer. Mag. Jan. 20 To positively unhinge and subvert the minds and morals of the multitude.
1963 A. Baraka Blues People xii. 177 The ease with which big-band jazz was subverted suggests how open an expression Negro music could become.
2007 H. H. Alonso Robert E. Sherwood ix. 288 He warned that power-hungry demagogues might subvert the people's desires.
4. † b. transitive. To evert (the eyelid). Obsolete. rare.
a. transitive. To upset or overturn (an object); to break up or turn over (ground). Also figurative. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > cultivation or tillage > breaking up land > break up land [verb (transitive)]
inhook1265
upbreak1382
becarvea1425
subvert1479
ripea1500
outrive1598
the world > movement > motion in a certain direction > downward motion > causing to come or go down > cause to come or go down [verb (transitive)] > capsize or upset
overcastc1230
overturnc1300
overthrowc1330
to-turna1382
overwhelm?a1400
tilta1400
tipa1400
welt?a1400
overtiltc1400
tirvec1420
reverse?a1439
devolvec1470
subvert1479
welter?a1505
renverse1521
tumble1534
verse1556
upturn1567
overwhirl1577
rewalt1587
subverse1590
overset1599
overtumble1600
walt1611
to fetch up1615
ramvert1632
treveer1636
transvolve1644
capsize1788
upset1806
keel1828
overwelt1828
pitch-pole1851
purl1856
1479 Earl Rivers tr. Cordyal (Caxton) i. iv This puissant kyng, Xerses..subuerted the monteyns and couered the sees.
1543–4 Act 35 Hen. VIII c. 10 §2 The Partie..whose Lande or Soile shalbe so herafter subverted and broken.
1563 2nd Tome Homelyes Homily ii. i. sig. Dd ij He..ouertourneth the tables of thexchaungers, subuerteth the seates of them that sold doues.
1663 G. Harvey Archelogia Philosophica Nova II. xvi. 372 There is another kind of Earthquake called Arietation..: Sometimes this hapned without any dammage..; other times meeting in cavernous places have subverted mountains.
a1684 J. Evelyn Diary anno 1662 (1955) III. 316 The tempest of Wind..which subverted besids huge trees, many houses, innumerable Chimnies.
1697 J. Dryden tr. Virgil Georgics iv, in tr. Virgil Wks. 131 They themselves contrive To rob the Honey, and subvert the Hive. View more context for this quotation
1718 tr. E. Lutwyche Rep. Resol. Court 1 564 It was unreasonable that the Plaintiff's Soil only should be subverted and destroyed for the Benefit of others.
1783 J. O. Justamond tr. G. T. F. Raynal Philos. Hist. Europeans in Indies (new ed.) III. vi. 277 Antient revolutions..have subverted the earth.
1859 Illustr. Mag. 8 117/1 He walked slowly to the table, subverted a decanter with each hand, so as to let the last drops fall out.
1898 G. Meredith Odes French Hist. 72 Laboured mounds, that a foot or a wanton stick may subvert.
1909 Atlantic Reporter 71 767/2 The said defendant..broke and entered the plaintiff's close in said Bangor, and then and there dug up and subverted the soil and earth.
ΘΚΠ
the world > space > relative position > inversion > invert [verb (transitive)] > turn inside out > the eyelid
subvert1547
1547 A. Borde Breuiary of Helthe i. f. lxxxiii Blere eyes whiche is whan the vnder lyd of the eye is subuerted.
5. transitive. Originally: to impair the functioning of (an organ); to alter (a normal physiological or a pathological process), usually injuriously; esp. to upset (the stomach); to suppress (the appetite). Cf. subversion n. 4. Now rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > action or operation > harm or detriment > cause or effect (harm) [verb (transitive)] > do harm or injury to > affect detrimentally
atterc885
hurtc1200
marc1225
appair1297
impair1297
spilla1300
emblemishc1384
endull1395
blemishc1430
depaira1460
depravea1533
deform1533
envenom1533
vitiate1534
quail1551
impeach1563
subvert1565
craze1573
taint1573
spoil1578
endamage1579
qualify1584
stain1584
crack1590
ravish1594
interess1598
invitiate1598
corrupt1602
venom1621
depauperate1623
detriment1623
flaw1623
embase1625
ungold1637
murder1644
refract1646
depress1647
addle1652
sweal1655
butcher1659
shade1813
mess1823
puckeroo1840
untone1861
blue1880
queer1884
dick1972
forgar-
the world > health and disease > ill health > a disease > disorders of internal organs > disorders of stomach > cause stomach disorder [verb (transitive)]
subvert1565
1565 J. Hall Expositiue Table 112 in tr. Lanfranc Most Excellent Woorke Chirurg. It [sc. scammony] hurteth the harte,..subuerteth the stomache, taketh away appetyte, [etc.].
1620 T. Venner Via Recta 98 The sweet Orenges are not fit for sauce, because they subuert the appetite, and cause loathsomnesse in the stomacke.
1628 T. Venner Baths of Bathe 19 Ill and preposterous vse..[of the Bath waters] will weaken the stomacke, subuert the liuer, annoy the head and brest.
1665 G. Thomson Galeno-pale xiv. 67 Whereby it comes to pass that the Tone and Ferment of the Stomack is subverted.
1689 G. Harvey Art of curing Dis. by Expectation iv. 21 [The] humours..acquire a levain so pernicious, as to deprave and subvert the animal Faculty.
1722 D. Turner Art of Surg. I. iii. 208 That pernicious Custom of Whetting, under pretence of creating an Appetite, subverting the same.
a1771 H. Pemberton Course Chem. (1773) iii. 46 The medicines..are diversified in their effects. Some subvert the stomach.
1833 J. Forbes et al. Cycl. Pract. Med. II. 546/1 The violent struggles of the heart to surmount the obstacle subvert the general balance of the circulation.
1884 Therapeutic Gaz. 15 Apr. 148/2 The virus is eliminated from the blood as fast as it incubates, and before there is ever a sufficient accumulation to subvert the vital functions or greatly contaminate the blood, it is all eliminated.
1901 Clinique 22 682 It has a direct action upon the secretory process and thus stimulates the glandular function, while it subverts the incoordinate muscle excitement.
6. transitive. Originally Literary Criticism. To challenge and undermine (a conventional idea, form, genre, etc.), esp. by using or presenting it in a new or unorthodox way.
ΚΠ
1956 H. Kenner in Sewanee Rev. 64 588 What more logical than that Yeats should have modelled..his testament on the traditional collections of miscellaneous poems, and (as he always did when he touched a tradition) subverted the usual implications?
1976 Times Lit. Suppl. 23 Apr. 486/2 Weill's errant and loudly stated bass-line throwing up the odd chord that violently subverts the triteness of the ricky-ticky melody.
1989 in New Yorker 16 Jan. 26/3 An underground club form of entertainment which appropriates and subverts the images, fashion and music prevalent in mainstream culture.
1990 Boston Phoenix 27 Apr. c11/4 He painted lots of Standard gasoline stations and Norm's restaurants that..deconstructed and subverted the visual language of advertising and popular culture.
2005 A. Billson Buffy the Vampire Slayer ii. 18 Buffy the Vampire Slayer..would simultaneously embrace and subvert the cliches of slasher movies in a postmodern approach.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2012; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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