SYNONYMS AND RELATED EXPRESSIONS
mediocre
adjective
Only moderate in quality; not especially good.
Local English device voice, when available. This is not a recorded dictionary pronunciation.
Unimpressive in quality
Closest synonyms
Related words and expressions
These extend or explain the idea and may require a different sentence structure.
Usage distinction
Return to topMediocre usually expresses disappointment, even when the literal comparison is only to average quality.
RELATED FORMS, ONE FEATURED ENTRY
The mediocre family
These forms are closely related, but their grammar and use are not identical. Expand a form to compare its meaning and examples.
mediocritynoun
An ordinary or unimpressive level of quality.
Ordinary quality
Closest synonyms
Related expressions
The editor pushed the draft beyond mediocrity with more precise examples.
The first version fell into mediocrity because its uneven joints and awkward arrangement produced an ordinary, unimpressive result, not because practical design was inherently poor.
CHECK THE MEANING IN CONTEXT
See mediocre in use
The stunning cover could not rescue a mediocre novel.
A mediocre audio piece drew a more specific criticism because its repeated fragments developed neither a pattern nor a striking contrast for the listening group.
Compare an alternative with the original word in each passage. Shared meanings do not make every pair interchangeable.
Synonym reference scope and sources
The groups distinguish the senses selected for this study entry. Closest synonyms and broader related expressions have separate labels. The listed sources support lexical selection; not every phrase is a direct quotation from a source.
How the synonym reference was prepared / WordNet 3.0 license