subscription
Americannoun
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a sum of money given or pledged as a contribution, payment, investment, etc.
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the right to receive a periodical for a sum paid, usually for an agreed number of issues.
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an arrangement for presenting a series of concerts, plays, etc., that one may attend by the payment of a membership fee.
to purchase a 10-concert subscription.
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the right to receive a service or access text online for a certain period of time.
a subscription to a media streaming service; a subscription to an online encyclopedia; a satellite-TV subscription.
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Chiefly British. the dues paid by a member of a club, society, etc.
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a fund raised through sums of money subscribed.
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a sum subscribed.
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the act of appending one's signature or mark, as to a document.
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a signature or mark thus appended.
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something written beneath or at the end of a document or the like.
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a document to which a signature is attached.
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assent, agreement, or approval expressed verbally or by signing one's name.
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Ecclesiastical. assent to or acceptance of a body of principles or doctrines, the purpose of which is to establish uniformity.
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Church of England. formal acceptance of the Thirty-nine Articles of 1563 and the Book of Common Prayer.
noun
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a payment or promise of payment for consecutive issues of a magazine, newspaper, book, etc, over a specified period of time
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the advance purchase of tickets for a series of concerts, operas, etc
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( as modifier )
a subscription concert
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an amount of money paid or promised, as to a charity, or the fund raised in this way
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an offer to buy shares or bonds issued by a company
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the act of signing one's name to a document, etc
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a signature or other appendage attached to the bottom of a document, etc
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agreement, consent, or acceptance expressed by or as if by signing one's name
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a signed document, statement, etc
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the membership dues or fees paid to a society or club
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acceptance of a fixed body of articles of faith, doctrines, or principles laid down as universally binding upon all the members of a Church
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med that part of a written prescription directing the pharmacist how to mix and prepare the ingredients: rarely seen today as modern drugs are mostly prepackaged by the manufacturers
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an advance order for a new product
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the sale of books, etc, prior to printing
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( as modifier )
a subscription edition
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archaic allegiance; submission
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of subscription
1400–50; late Middle English < Old French subscription < Latin subscrīptiōn- (stem of subscrīptiō ) “something written beneath, signature, subscription” equivalent to subscrīpt ( us ) ( see subscript) + -iōn- -ion
Explanation
A subscription is an agreement conveyed with a signature. It's also buying a bunch of issues of a periodical, such as a year's subscription to "The New York Times" newspaper. See the word script in subscription? That's a clue that this word has to do with writing. Specifically, a subscription is the act of signing something that you agree to, like a petition. You can have a subscription to a belief too. Also, when you order a magazine or newspaper's future issues, you buy a subscription. Subscriptions like this usually last one year: you pay, and the magazine agrees to send you copies until your subscription runs out.
Vocabulary lists containing subscription
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The analyst is also confident that Apple will continue to grow its services segment, which includes the App Store and other subscription services and is the company’s highest margin piece of the business.
From Barron's • May 14, 2026
Between travel, buying a subscription to enter the game and then buying clues from the organizer, they spent about $1,500, along with “so much time and energy,” Novak said.
From Los Angeles Times • May 12, 2026
TikTok is introducing a subscription charge for UK users who do not want to see adverts on the platform.
From BBC • May 11, 2026
No. Endlessly forking over subscription dollars for app content seems like too much.
From Slate • May 10, 2026
At two dollars a minute, twenty-five minutes would pay for a subscription to The Wall Street Journal.
From "The Westing Game" by Ellen Raskin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.