underachiever

noun

un·der·achiev·er ˌən-dər-ə-ˈchē-vər

Synonyms of underachiever next

: one (such as a student) that fails to attain a predicted level of achievement or does not do as well as expected

underachieve

ˌən-dər-ə-ˈchēv

intransitive verb

underachievement

ˌən-dər-ə-ˈchēv-mənt

noun

Example Sentences

Recent Examples on the Web Lloyd, an optimistic underachiever, falls in love with Diane, a straight-A valedictorian. —

Kori Williams, Seventeen, 20 Jan. 2023 Among those drafted and developed by the Rangers, there had been Martín Pérez, who at the time was labeled an underachiever, and everybody else. —

Dallas News, 5 Jan. 2023 Arizona State is an underachiever, and the sooner Herm Edwards gets the gate, the better. —

Kevin Sherrington, Dallas News, 5 July 2022 For all its wealth, the U.S. is a notable underachiever, with the average remaining below 79 due to extreme income inequality. —

Jonathon Keats, Discover Magazine, 11 June 2020 His background is not that of the bootstrapping underachiever who overcame debilitating poverty; his parents are both professionals. —

Robin Givhan, Washington Post, 25 Oct. 2022 Is Alicia Keys an underachiever, an overachiever, or both? —

George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Sep. 2022 The Aussie had become tennis’ most frustrating underachiever, tanking matches and acting terribly when things weren’t going his way. —

Dan Wolken, USA TODAY, 6 July 2022 Atlanta -- last year’s conference finalist and a relative underachiever this season -- is all that stands between Cleveland and its first playoff appearance without LeBron James in more than two decades. —

Chris Fedor, cleveland, 14 Apr. 2022 See More

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'underachiever.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.