1
as in average
being about midway between extremes of amount or size
tired of the city but not particularly interested in small-town life, he moved to a suburb of middling size
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in decent
of average to below average quality
was disappointed in the renowned historian's latest book, which is only middling
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of middling
Technically, this is a cheat: 2018’s Liberation tried this too, but to middling effect.
—
Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 14 Mar. 2025
New York won seven straight under coach and Hall of Fame goalie Patrick Roy, but has since returned to its middling ways, seizing four of its past 10 opportunities.
—Andrew Knoll, Orange County Register, 8 Mar. 2025
He was acquired in a pick-swap deal that reflected his middling value as a solid, but unspectacular player, in a contract year.
—Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 4 Mar. 2025
Actor Tim Blake Nelson, who wrote, directed, and stars in Leaves of Grass, deserved better than its middling reviews and dreadful box-office performance.
—Barry Levitt, Vulture, 18 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for middling
Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 14 Mar. 2025
New York won seven straight under coach and Hall of Fame goalie Patrick Roy, but has since returned to its middling ways, seizing four of its past 10 opportunities.
—Andrew Knoll, Orange County Register, 8 Mar. 2025
He was acquired in a pick-swap deal that reflected his middling value as a solid, but unspectacular player, in a contract year.
—Andrew Callahan, Boston Herald, 4 Mar. 2025
Actor Tim Blake Nelson, who wrote, directed, and stars in Leaves of Grass, deserved better than its middling reviews and dreadful box-office performance.
—Barry Levitt, Vulture, 18 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for middling
Recent Examples of Synonyms for middling
Adjective
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The American Public Health Association says that as global average temperatures rise, these trends will continue and make allergies an increasing public health concern.—
Janet Loehrke,
USA Today,
29 Apr. 2025
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The average salary of a family medicine physician is slightly over $300,000, compared with more than $565,000 for a cardiologist and over $763,000 for a neurosurgeon, according to one study.—
Bernard J. Wolfson and Vanessa G. Sánchez,
Los Angeles Times,
28 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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The former Washington Husky has had a decent start to his 2025 season.—
Thomas G. Moukawsher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 Apr. 2025
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Thus far, Wall Street has had a decent start to the first-quarter earnings season.—
Sarah Min,
CNBC,
24 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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The median list price climbed 6.2 percent in March, compared to a year earlier—the biggest increase since September 2022.—
Tom Rogers,
MSNBC Newsweek,
30 Apr. 2025
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Here’s a breakdown of costs and sales in the South Florida housing market in March 2025 compared to the same period a year ago: What is the median sales price of a single-family home? Miami-Dade County: $670,000 in March, up from $650,000 a year ago.—
Howard Cohen,
Miami Herald,
25 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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The findings are available to the public at cdc.gov, with a score of 86 and above deemed satisfactory and anything under considered unsatisfactory.—
Chrissie McClatchie,
Travel + Leisure,
16 Apr. 2025
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The player: Luis Ortiz Ortiz’s first three starts, respectively, could be classified as ugly, satisfactory and excellent.—
Zack Meisel,
New York Times,
14 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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In a skillet, sweat the onion with half the extra virgin olive oil for several minutes over medium heat.—
Isabella Milano,
Better Homes & Gardens,
23 Apr. 2025
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Place a cast-iron skillet or other heavy-bottomed skillet over medium heat.—
Linda Zavoral,
Mercury News,
15 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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For small teams, especially in early-stage startups, spreading content efforts thin often leads to mediocre results across all platforms.—
Abdo Riani,
Forbes.com,
22 Apr. 2025
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After a mediocre entry in 2023’s Assassin’s Creed Mirage—which began as Valhalla DLC and was developed by B-team Ubisoft Bordeaux—Shadows is an all-in, massive budget monstrosity led by the very Aist of teams.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
18 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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So refreshing to see out of ordinary kitchen design.—
Thomas G. Moukawsher,
MSNBC Newsweek,
26 Apr. 2025
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It will be attended by dozens of religious and political leaders from around the world, including President Donald Trump, and thousands of ordinary worshipers.—
Kim Hjelmgaard,
USA Today,
26 Apr. 2025
Adjective
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Jesus routinely criticized wealthy people who were indifferent to the poor.—
John Blake,
CNN Money,
20 Apr. 2025
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And if these two were indifferent to each other, there would be no story.—
Chris Willman,
Variety,
19 Apr. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Middling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/middling. Accessed 6 May. 2025.
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