Green’s Dictionary of Slang

1. a subaltern.

1756		Washington Writings (1889) I 293: Leaving Garrisons in them from 15 to 30 men under command of a sub or Trusty Sergeant [OED].
1787		Calcutta Gaz. 8 Mar. n.p.: And stroll among my brother Subs in search of better news.
1799		Sporting Mag. July XIV 222/1: A jolly sub [...] / Cried, ‘Colonel, here’s hardly enough for a prime!’.
1815		D. Roberts Military Adventures of Johnny Newcome I 16: He was himself a Sub in the King’s Own.
1822		‘A. Burton’ My Cousin in the Army 8: He stepp’d into a Sub’s commission.
1837		‘Hints for an Historical Play’ in Bentley’s Misc. June 597: Though humble, yet far above mere vulgar loons, / He’s a sort of a Sub in the Rufus dragoons.
1851		R.S. Surtees Young Tom Hall (1926) 35: And Fibs and Stalker and Pippin and all the jolly subs, ‘he-he-he’d’ and ‘haw-haw-haw’d’.
1859		G.F. Atkinson Curry & Rice (3 edn) n.p.: The chaff of his fellow subs.
1861		Hills & Plains I 18: Two hot-headed ‘subs’ of the regiment were seen [...] fighting.
1862		Thackeray Adventures of Philip (1899) 417: When we were subs together in camp in 1803.
1871		C. Money Knocking About in N.Z. 12: Here was a well-trained moustache [...] whose smooth and wavy ‘fall’ had been the envy of the wearer’s subs in the Lancers.
1874		‘Old Calabar’ Won in a Canter I 25: [T]he young subs liked to have some one to amuse them in their dull country quarters. The Colonel liked it too.
1875		‘Aliph Cheem’ Lays of Ind (1905) 49: Sub. the third drank himself to D.T.
1884		H. Smart Post to Finish I 169: With far larger means and much cooler brains than his sub.
1891		Sporting Times 7 Feb. 3/2: The subs who slept in adjacent tents.
1895		Crowe Aus. Sl. Dict. 82: Sub, a subaltern officer.
1914		E. Wittmann ‘Clipped Words’ in DN IV:ii 128: sub, from subaltern.

2. a subject of the monarch.

1818		Morn. Post (London) 26 Aug. 3/4: I am the sub whom none shall snub; / I’ll do as I please — Play the fool at my ease / [...] / Who’ever the King may be [...] I’ll tickle his toby.
1838		Beckett Paradise Lost 8: No longer was he heard to sing, Like loyal subs, ‘God Save the King!’ [F&H].
1881		Dr Doran In and About Drury Lane II 13: In behalf of some of the fine ladies of the time, government officials cheated their own revenue department without scruple. Jackson was, one day in 1810, amused to find the ‘subs’ at the Foreign Office very anxious, at Lord Wellesley’s suggestion, to devise a means of getting a box of shoes which had been sent from Spain, for Lady Holland, but which had been seized by the Custom House officers.
1914		E. Wittmann ‘Clipped Words’ in DN IV:ii 121: sub, from subject.

3. a subscriber.

1838

T. Hood Clubs 62: Indeed my daughters both declare Their Beaux shall not be subs. To White’s, or Blacks — They 've seen enough of Clubs !

4. (orig. Aus.) a subordinate.

1855		Bell’s Life in Sydney 19 May 3/2: The Inspector hereupon advised his sub to withdraw to his siesta, seeing that his watch was over, and that he was half seas over .
1880		Bulletin (Sydney) 21 Aug. 3/2: His subs in office are George Gordon Macrae [and] Harrison.
2023		M. Herron Secret Hours 59: ‘As for panel members’ expenses, stationery requirements and so on, your sub can handle all that’ [...] ‘Sub’ meaning subordinate.

5. (also subbie) a loan, esp. an advance on wages.

1866		Harris Evidence before Totness Election Commission n.p.: The voters ask for sub, which is the term used here for money, as sugar and paint are used elsewhere [F&H].
1892		J. Newman Scamping Tricks 123: About six wanted ‘sub’.
1900		Chevalier & West [perf. Albrt Chevalier] ‘An Old Bachelor’ 🎵 And if they're running short of cash and want a modest sub: / They know I’ve more tha I can spend.
1913		P. Macgill ‘Ballad of the Long Dam’ Songs of the Dead End 94: ’Twas on the day the Long Dam burst, Moleskin he bummed his sub. / And went and got boozed.
1914		R. Tressell Ragged Trousered Philanthropists (1955) 317: The other shilling had been deducted from his wages in repayment of a ‘sub’ he had had during the week.
1929		J.B. Priestley Good Companions 249: Look at the position I’m in now – having to get a sub from home!
1937		J. Curtis There Ain’t No Justice 14: Get a sub to-day?
1959		C. MacInnes Absolute Beginners 166: I’ve just had a sub.
1960		C. MacInnes Mr Love and Justice (1964) 27: ‘Money, money,’ he said cheerfully, holding out his hand. ‘The old firm doesn’t even move without a sub.’.
1976		T. Murphy Sanctuary Lamp in Plays: 3 (1994) I ii: And if he doesn’t give me the subbies, we’ll have to tap St. Anthony for the short term.
1984		Flame : a Life on the Game 112: Hans persuaded me to ask for a £10 sub from the wages department.
1999		N. Cohn Yes We Have No 65: She called on Keith, in hopes of a quick sub.
2000		J.J. Connolly Layer Cake 34: Scraping by week after week, year in year out, stretching out the Monte Cairo till next pay day, living on subs and Christmas clubs.

6. a substitute; occas. an act of substitution (see cite 1967).

1876		Scribner’s Monthly Apr. 838/1: He consented finally to allow another printer to take his place in the ‘Clarion’ office—temporarily, and as his ‘sub’ only [DA].
1899		St Paul Globe (MN) 31 Dec. 11/5: We tried to make him put on a sub and take a night off.
1902		W.A. Sun. Times (Perth) 9 Feb. 1/1: Failing to remember a word of Boulevard blasphemy, he called in the ‘sub’ to swear for him.
1906		S. Ford Shorty McCabe 204: If there’s any funny stunts expected, you tell ’em I’ve put on a sub.
1909		Wodehouse Mike [ebook] ‘Of course, I’m only playing as a sub., you know’.
1914		E. Wittmann ‘Clipped Words’ in DN IV:ii 123: sub, from substitute. ‘Playing on the team?’ ‘No, I’m only a sub.’.
1942		Pittsburgh Courier (PA) 27 June 21/1: ‘That old yearn [...] is like a vipers yen and there can’t be any sub’.
1955		(con. 1925) H. Robbins A Stone for Danny Fisher 38: The sub came up with the gloves.
1967		J. Wynnum I’m a Jack, All Right 8: I’m doing a sub for Stripey Travis tonight [...] There’s a spin in it [...] I couldn’t afford to knock it back.
1975		Spradley & Mann Cocktail Waitress 42: If I had known I was going to have to work with you two miniboobs tonight, I would have gotten a sub.
2003		McGill Reed Dict. of N.Z. Sl. 203: sub A replacement player in a game of rugby ANZ.

7. (US) a subject, e.g. of conversation.

1885

N.Y. Mercury May in Ware (1909) 236/1: With Captain Williams, her namesake, as chairman, would be the judges here. The Mercury will be pleased to hear from Mrs Williams on this sub.

8. a subscription.

1896		Riverina Recorder (Moulamein, NSW) 2 Sept. 2/7: [A] tennis club has been formed in Balranald [...] the sub is, gents’ 5s, ladies’ 2s 6d pnr annum.
1914		E. Wittmann ‘Clipped Words’ in DN IV:ii 128: sub, from subscription.
1937		J. Curtis There Ain’t No Justice 36: As soon as we get some dough we’ll pay your subs to a gymnasium.
1951		D. Stivens Jimmy Brockett 123: Pay their subs for ’em.
1964		Punch July 1 22: If the subs are out, there’ll be more divi for the shareholders.
1970		H.E. Bates A Little of What You Fancy (1985) 538: Pop demanded what sort of sub. they had in mind?
1998		J. O’Connor Salesman 29: Everyone in the family had given me either a book or a book token, all except my sister Nessa who’d gotten me a sub to the NME.
2001		K. Sampson Outlaws (ms.) 63: Christmas piss-heads will spend their money in the gaff and they have to make up their subs to Mikey.

9. a submarine.

1917		G. Bowerman diary 19 Aug. in Carnes Compensations of War (1983) 11: A careful listener could compile quite a history of this attack [...] and ‘sub’ attacks.
1929		(con. 1917–18) C. MacArthur War Bugs 194: Lionel’s boat. It’s a subchaser.
1932		B.M. Harvey Me and Bad Eye and Slim 37: Haven’t seen any subs yet.
1942		Whizzbang Comics 64: The sub. is a Jerry all right.
1955		B. Schulberg On the Waterfront (1964) 123: Schlegel settled in Bohegan after his sub was held there at the end of the first World War.
1962		E. Stephens Blow Negative! 45: I’ve never been on a sub.
1970		N. Beagley Up and Down Under 105: A Jap sub cut its way through the steel net in Sydney harbour.
1983		A-Team Storybook 7: It seemed like it was going to hit the sub again.
1996		P. Cornwell Cause of Death (1997) 289: So the sub we’re talking about is old.
2000		Guardian Rev. 28 Apr. 23: Leaving them stranded on a shagged-out sub whose dials and instruments are all in German.

10. (US) the subway.

1931

P.J. Wolfson Bodies are Dust (2019) [ebook] I got a stand over near the sub.

11. in sado-masochistic sex, a submissive.

2004

L. Redhead Peepshow [ebook] The mistresses don’t generally have intercourse, but the subs are required to provide it, yes.