Boss and Subordinate

Opposite meaning words

Boss noun - The person (as an employer or supervisor) who tells people and especially workers what to do.

Usage example: every morning the boss hands out a list of top-priority tasks

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Subordinate is an antonym for boss.

Nearby Words: bossy, bossed, bossing

Subordinate noun - One who is of lower rank and typically under the authority of another.

Usage example: subordinates do most of the actual creation of the famous designer's clothing designs

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Boss is an antonym for subordinate in topics: independent, person that serves another.

good	good boss	good subordinate
female	female boss	female subordinate
elite	elite boss	elite subordinate
best	best boss	best subordinate
Other adjectives: certain, dead, powerful, male, evil, secret, former, titular, next, last, different.

Even though Seriho is Sarasa's boss, they work more as a team than as a boss and subordinate.

Source: Manga / Ame-iro Kouchakan Kandan
Vitriolic Best Buds: Gareth and Everton apparently were like this as children, and become something like this again to some extent when reunited as adults (just with a boss/subordinate overlay).

Source: Series / Chef!
Noah Bennet and Eden are boss and subordinate, she is clearly tinier than him and is only slightly taller than Claire.

Source: Huge Guy, Tiny Girl

Cite this Source

Subordinate and Boss. (2016). Retrieved 2026, July 21, from https://thesaurus.plus/related/boss/subordinate

Boss & Subordinate. N.p., 2016. Web. 21 Jul. 2026. <https://thesaurus.plus/related/boss/subordinate>.

Subordinate or Boss. 2016. Accessed July 21, 2026. https://thesaurus.plus/related/boss/subordinate.

Google Ngram Viewer shows how "boss" and "subordinate" have occurred on timeline