reduce implies a forcing to capitulate or surrender.
the city was reduced after a month-long siege
overcome suggests getting the better of with difficulty or after hard struggle.
overcame a host of bureaucratic roadblocks
overthrow stresses the bringing down or destruction of existing power.
violently overthrew the old regime
Example Sentences
The troops were finally able to subdue the rebel forces after many days of fighting. He was injured while trying to subdue a violent drunk. She struggled to subdue her fears.
Recent Examples on the WebJunior Ronnie Royal III scored three touchdowns and JR Gardner added two as the Dolphins built a big second-half lead and had to hold on in the final two minutes to subdue St. Michael 34-27 at Fairhope Municipal Stadium. Ben Thomas | Bthomas@al.com, al, 18 Aug. 2022 Officers ultimately had to deploy a taser to subdue him. Anders Hagstrom, Fox News, 16 Aug. 2022 The man was uncooperative and a Taser was used to subdue him.cleveland, 10 Aug. 2022 During a civil rights jury trial in US District Court, Williams and Burgio were found liable for violating Cox’s rights by using excessive force to subdue him, and for their indifference to Cox’s medical needs. Ivy Scott, BostonGlobe.com, 13 July 2022 On horseback, Pickett would chase a steer, leap onto it and wrangle it to the ground—sometimes biting the animal’s lip and nose to subdue it. Chris La Tray, Smithsonian Magazine, 7 July 2022 Officers later took the man into custody, possibly after using a stun-gun device to subdue him. Alex Riggins, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 July 2022 Bobby DiCello, lawyer for Walker's family, told The New York Times that eight officers fired more than 90 times after attempting to subdue him with stun guns. Glenn Garner, PEOPLE.com, 3 July 2022 Chang then slammed a chair into the gunman, pushing him to the floor and allowing other congregants to subdue him, Barnes said. Byjulia Jacobo, ABC News, 17 May 2022 See More
Word History
Etymology
Middle English sodewen, subduen, from Anglo-French soduire, subdure to lead astray, overcome, arrest (influenced in form and meaning by Latin subdere to subject), from Latin subducere to withdraw, remove stealthily