These words refer to a positive response or to a congruence between or among things. Consent is restricted to the giving of permission or the accepting of a proposal or request.

• The adjutant consented to the corporal’s request for emergency leave; She consented to his proposal of marriage.

Consent always implies the power not to consent : The king gave willing consent to his son’s marriage to a princess, and reluctant consent to his daughter’s marriage to a commoner. Where consent often implies the permission of a superior, assent can indicate the approval of an equal. The word, furthermore, is most often limited to an affirmative response to a statement or opinion: She assented to the doctor’s assertion that her son was ill, but would not consent to having him hospitalized. Acquiesce suggests either lukewarm or minimal compliance or a compliance compelled by outside force or circumstances: With a shrug, she acquiesced in his proposal that they go to the football game together; a spontaneous uprising that forced the government to acquiesce to the demands of its citizens. In the latter case, the word does not suggest the uncompromised freedom to choose that is inherent in the previous words.

Agree is much wider in its application than the previous words. It can apply, like consent , to a positive responds: after hearing his prepared statement, many on the committee agree with his stand. But the word can also indicate congruence of opinion that does not involve statement and response, or even previous negotiation or discussion: I met the new manager today and found that we agree on basic policies. In its widest use, the word can indicate things that are alike: Both husband and wife were surprised to find that the balances in their separate chequebooks agreed to the cent. Concur is restricted to statements, findings or opinions, but otherwise can indicate, like agree , positions that are found to be alike: The two scientists, working separately and unknown to each other, had reached conclusions that concurred . More often, however, the word refers to a common position reached by serious deliberation or negotiation: Each member of the committee finally concurred as to what position they should take on the controversial matter. The word can also indicate agreeing to a position already taken by another or other: One Supreme Court judge wrote a separate but concurring opinion.

Subscribe indicates wholehearted approval for an already formulated position. The word’s root suggests the signing of one’s name beneath a statement; the word may sometimes suggest this situation, but much more often it indicates only a comparable willingness to support and defend a position: A public-opinion poll proved that the voters subscribed to the government’s policy. Sometimes the notion of a public avowal is completely absent: They subscribed in secret to discriminatory employment practices.