subjective
subjective — adjective
1. based on personal opinions, tastes, or feelings instead of on facts that can be
based on personal opinions, tastes, or feelings instead of on facts that can be measured or proven by everyone
Deciding which film is better is subjective — Min loved it, Yara found it boring.
contrasts subjective reactions between two people
The teacher told the class the grades were based on technique, not on subjective taste.
subjective contrasted with objective criteria
Beauty standards are highly subjective and can change across different cultures and time periods.
Hao asked three friends to name their favourite film; each chose a different one — proof that taste is subjective.
- personal
broader in meaning; refers to private or individual matters, not just judgment
- biased
stronger negative connotation; implies unfairness rather than mere personal perspective
- opinion-based
more explicit about opinion as the source; less formal
- individual
emphasises one person's view rather than shared standards
文法句型
subjective + noun
be + subjective
more subjective than
用法筆記
Frequently contrasted with objective in discussions of fairness or accuracy. Many everyday statements about taste, preference, or opinion are subjective by nature — this does not make them invalid, only personal.
常見錯誤
2. relating to thoughts, feelings, or perceptions that take place within a person's
relating to thoughts, feelings, or perceptions that take place within a person's consciousness, not in the observable external world
A patient's subjective experience of pain can differ from what doctors observe on a scan.
collocation: subjective experience of pain
In psychology class, the students discussed how subjective memories often differ from what actually happened.
Tunde described his subjective feeling that time had slowed down during the accident.
The psychologist asked Yara to describe her subjective state during the meditation exercise.
Colour perception is partly subjective because each brain processes light signals differently.
文法句型
subjective + noun (experience, perception, state)
用法筆記
Common in formal or academic writing, especially psychology and philosophy. Two people can experience the same external event yet report different subjective experiences — the difference lies inside their minds, not in the world around them.
常見錯誤
subjective — noun
1. the area of personal experience, opinion, and feeling, considered as a category
the area of personal experience, opinion, and feeling, considered as a category separate from measurable facts
The study separates hard facts from the subjective — personal views that cannot be counted.
the subjective as a noun phrase contrasted with facts
Philosophers debate how much of human experience belongs to the objective versus the subjective.
paired contrast: the objective and the subjective
Dr. Eitan ran all the tests but also valued the subjective — his patient's own account.
The subjective cannot be weighed on scales — it requires people to describe their inner experience.
In art criticism, reviewers must balance technical analysis with the subjective.
- personal experience
more concrete and everyday; less technical
- inner world
more poetic; suggests emotions and private thoughts
- the objective
the realm of measurable facts independent of personal feeling
文法句型
the subjective
the objective and the subjective
用法筆記
Typically appears in formal or academic writing as a mass noun preceded by the definite article. It treats subjective experience as a domain or category — for instance, when contrasting the measurable world with the world of personal feeling.