Subletters

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Individuals who lease a rented property from the original tenant who holds the official lease agreement rather than directly from the landlord ; people who take over a tenant’s rights and obligations under a rental contract through a secondary agreement ; parties who occupy or rent all or part of a property by obtaining permission from the primary lessee instead of the property owner
2. Those who rent premises from the main leaseholder rather than the property owner ; lessees who obtain the right to use a property by agreement with the original renter ; tenants granted occupancy through a sublease arrangement instead of a direct landlord-tenant contract
3. Persons who take possession or occupancy of a leased property by arrangement with the original tenant ; occupants who lease from the primary renter rather than from the landlord ; individuals involved in a secondary rental agreement within an existing leasehold tenure

Etymology: The noun "subletters" is simply the plural of "subletter," and the story lies mostly in its parts. "Sublet" is a compound: "sub-" from Latin "sub," meaning "under," joined to "let," the Old English verb meaning to allow someone to use property in return for payment. To sublet is thus to let under, passing a lease down to a second occupant beneath the original tenant. The agent suffix "-er," inherited through Old French from Latin "-arius," was added to that verb to name the person doing the renting. The compound is not a single formation from one moment. "Let" in its sense of granting use of property is an ancient English word, while "sub-" was productive in English largely through Latin borrowings, so the combination reflects two layers of the language meeting in a legal and commercial setting. A subletter, in other words, is someone who rents "under" a lease in the most literal sense of the prefix.

Synonyms: tenants, lessees, renters

Antonyms: landlords