Subsidiarity

//səbˌsɪdiˈæɹɪti// noun

noun ·Rare ·Advanced level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    The principle that initiative (whether in government, business or religion) ought to reside at the lowest feasible level (i.e. at the local or regional level, instead of the national or supranational level, unless the latter presents clear advantages) uncountable, usually

    "According to the principle of subsidiarity, government should be as habitative as possible. Government functions must therefore be exercised at the most habitative level, as close as possible to those affected by the exercise of such functions."

  2. 2
    secondary importance wordnet

Synonyms

All synonyms
subordinatenesssubordinateness

Example

More examples

"According to the principle of subsidiarity, government should be as habitative as possible. Government functions must therefore be exercised at the most habitative level, as close as possible to those affected by the exercise of such functions."

Etymology

From Latin subsidiarius. By surface analysis, subsidiary + -ity.

More for "subsidiarity"

SynonymsSentencesPronunciationTranslate

Next best steps

Find stronger synonymsSee usage examplesCheck pronunciationBrowse writing guides

Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.