How to Use submissive in a Sentence

submissive

adjective
  • They were taught to be obedient and submissive, even as they were abused.
    — Scott D. Pierce, The Salt Lake Tribune, 3 June 2022
  • The priest played the submissive role, even agreeing to drink Crist's urine, the suit charged.
    — Charles P. Pierce, Esquire, 14 Dec. 2015
  • Submissive or insecure dogs will tend to hide any marks of their presence.
    — Answer Fella, Esquire, 27 Feb. 2006
  • The band maintained that in the home, women should be submissive to their husbands.
    — Leah Sottile, Longreads, 20 July 2019
  • Is being submissive in that moment the quickest way to bring that moment to an end?
    — Jackie Strause, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Sep. 2019
  • We were tied down to society's ignorant idea of us -- submissive and silent.
    — Sherry Cola, CNN, 15 Apr. 2021
  • Treat yourself to foot massages (or find a submissive eager to service you).
    — Sophie Saint Thomas, Allure, 25 Oct. 2017
  • Let nature take its course, and a pack of dogs will sort itself into the dominant and submissive roles.
    — Andrew C. McCarthy, National Review, 31 July 2021
  • Usually, guys with power like to be submissive and are bottoms.
    — Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 11 Dec. 2025
  • Either of us could play a submissive or a dominant role, depending on the mood.
    — Laura Roscioli, refinery29.com, 22 Jan. 2024
  • Managers are no longer as cautious, players are no longer as submissive, supporters are no longer as in awe.
    — Jordan Campbell, New York Times, 1 Sep. 2025
  • And obviously there were submissive moments in there as well.
    — Chelsey Sanchez, Harper's BAZAAR, 13 Jan. 2022
  • Offred is submissive and free from the struggles that come with fighting against the Gilead machine.
    — refinery29.com, 9 May 2018
  • The more submissive the manager is, the more Frenza will rip into her.
    — Literary Hub, 7 Apr. 2026
  • The brand also implies that girls should be sweet and submissive, and should expect a man to come to their rescue in an act of love at first sight.
    — Valentina Zarya, Fortune, 30 Oct. 2017
  • Her other cat, normally submissive to Lenny, has been hissing and snarling at him.
    — Zaz Hollander, Anchorage Daily News, 12 Nov. 2019
  • Muse pushes back on the perception of muses as submissive, a blank canvas rather than one bursting with ideas.
    — Elizabeth Djinis, Smithsonian Magazine, 5 May 2022
  • People today place a high value on their choices, and as a result, the era of the submissive consumer has come to an end.
    — Ildeme Mahinay Koch, Forbes, 13 May 2022
  • The researchers observed sick bees being more submissive and sharing more food when approached by hostile guards.
    — Alex Fox, Smithsonian Magazine, 30 Apr. 2020
  • Additionally, the bird has been the more submissive of the eaglets.
    — Michelle Del Rey, USA Today, 1 May 2026
  • There have been charges that women in People of Praise are encouraged to be submissive.
    — Peggy Noonan, WSJ, 24 Sep. 2020
  • This is a strategy born not of manly strength, but of submissive desperation.
    — Helen Lewis, The Atlantic, 5 June 2026
  • Even literary heroes had been growing more submissive, Whyte claimed.
    — David Merritt Johns, The Atlantic, 2 Nov. 2025
  • Similar to Alexa and Siri, such robots are docile, submissive, and designed to please.
    — Harper’s Magazine , 22 June 2022
  • Wilson also gets called a ‘simp,’ which is slang for a man who is viewed as foolish for being submissive or overly catering to his woman.
    — Elizabeth Ayoola, Essence, 26 Aug. 2025
  • Duvall’s acting in the film has been criticized for being over-the-top, and her character has been called weak and submissive.
    — Kelsey Ables, Anchorage Daily News, 3 Apr. 2022
  • Here’s this fleecy white creature, submissive and prepared for the bloodbath soon to come, a pure being, elevated far above the muck.
    — Los Angeles Times, 17 June 2022
  • American politics are all about men and their submissive little wifeypoos (and the side dishes whom the wifeys know all about but pretend not to).
    — Annie Lane, oregonlive, 17 Jan. 2021
  • Bondage is frequently part of impact play, as tying up the submissive, who then consensually can't move, adds to the thrill of the scene.
    — Sophie Saint Thomas, Allure, 1 May 2019
  • Meanwhile, the peacock on the left appears almost submissive, his tail trailing downward, a white tuft feather sticking out of his head.
    — Alicia Ault, Smithsonian Magazine, 19 July 2024

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'submissive.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

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