Represent vs Substitute - What's the difference?
represent | substitute |
To present again or anew; to present by means of something standing in the place of; to exhibit the counterpart or image of; to typify.
To portray by pictorial or plastic art; to delineate; as, to represent a landscape in a picture, a horse in bronze, and the like.
To portray by mimicry or action of any kind; to act the part or character of; to personate; as, to represent Hamlet.
To stand in the place of; to supply the place, perform the duties, exercise the rights, or receive the share, of; to speak and act with authority in behalf of; to act the part of (another); as, an heir represents his ancestor; an attorney represents his client in court; a member of Congress represents his district in Congress.
To exhibit to another mind in language; to show; to give one's own impressions and judgement of; to bring before the mind; to set forth; sometimes, to give an account of; to describe.
To serve as a sign or symbol of; as, mathematical symbols represent quantities or relations; words represent ideas or things.
To bring a sensation of into the mind or sensorium; to cause to be known, felt, or apprehended; to present.
To form or image again in consciousness, as an object of cognition or apprehension (something presentative, which was originally apprehended by direct presentation).
(Webster 1913)
To use in place of something else, with the same function.
In the phrase "substitute X for Y", to use X in place of Y. With increasing frequency used in the semantically opposite sense (see
In the phrase "substitute X with/by Y", to use Y in place of X; to replace X with Y
(sports) To remove (a player) from the field of play and bring on another in his place.
* {{quote-news
, year=2011
, date=April 11
, author=Phil McNulty
, title=Liverpool 3 - 0 Man City
, work=BBC Sport
To serve as a replacement (for someone or something)
* 1987 , , Essays in Economics, Vol. 2 , p. 75
A replacement or stand-in for something that achieves a similar result or purpose.
* De Quincey
(sports) A player who is available to replace another if the need arises, and who may or may not actually do so.
* {{quote-news
, year=2011
, date=November 3
, author=David Ornstein
, title=Macc Tel-Aviv 1 - 2 Stoke
, work=BBC Sport
(historical) One who enlists for military service in the place of a conscript.
As verbs the difference between represent and substitute
is that represent is to present again or anew; to present by means of something standing in the place of; to exhibit the counterpart or image of; to typify while substitute is to use in place of something else, with the same function.As a noun substitute is
a replacement or stand-in for something that achieves a similar result or purpose.represent
English
(Webster 1913)Alternative forms
* (archaic)Verb
(en verb)- He represented that he was investigating for the police department.
External links
* *Anagrams
*substitute
English
Verb
(substitut)- I had no shallots so I substituted onion.
the OED's notes).
- I had to substitute new parts for the old ones.
- I had to substitute old parts with the new ones. (This usage was formerly proscribed.)
- He was playing poorly and was substituted after twenty minutes
citation, page= , passage=Mario Balotelli replaced Tevez but his contribution was so negligible that he suffered the indignity of being substituted himself as time ran out, a development that encapsulated a wretched 90 minutes for City and boss Roberto Mancini. }}
- Accumulation of wealth by this route may substitute for personal saving.
Usage notes
The verb "to substitute" can be used transitively in two opposite ways. "To substitute X" may mean either "use X in place of something else" (as in definitions 1 and 2), or "use something else in place of X" (as in definitions 3 and 4). The latter use is more recent, but it is widespread and now generally accepted (seethe COED's note on the matter). However, if the indirect object (the "something else") is omitted, the preposition is also omitted, and the reader or hearer cannot tell which sense is meant: * "Substitute butter for olive oil" = Use butter instead of olive oil * "Substitute olive oil for butter" = Use olive oil instead of butter * "Substitute butter" = ??? * "Substitute olive oil" = ???
Noun
(en noun)- Ladies [in Shakespeare's age] wore masks as the sole substitute known to our ancestors for the modern parasol.
citation, page= , passage=Dean Whitehead opened the scoring shortly after the break with a low finish and substitute Peter Crouch sealed the win with a tap-in.}}