mediocrity

noun

Definition of mediocritynext
1
as in normality
the quality or state of being mediocre She's a perfectionist who refuses to settle for mediocrity.

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2
as in nothing
a person of little fame He surrounded himself with mediocrities to appear more notable by comparison.

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of mediocrity The culprit behind this mediocrity has been a developmental system that annually is the subject of criticism from media, former players, and coaches. — Mac Engel june 22, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 22 June 2026 The fact of the matter is, even without Judge, the Yankees are the best team in the American League, although that might not be saying a lot this year because the American League is rife with mediocrity. — Bill Madden, New York Daily News, 20 June 2026 Fortunately for you, Ferrari president Luca di Montezemolo, who famously griped about the mediocrity of the 348, has launched the radical new F355. — Basem Wasef, Robb Report, 17 June 2026 Yes, the Giants have jumped off the treadmill of mediocrity and subsequently sprained both ankles. — Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 16 June 2026 See All Example Sentences for mediocrity
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mediocrity
  1. normality
  2. nothing
  3. averageness
  4. obscurity
  5. acceptability
  6. inferior
  7. badness
  8. insect
Noun
  • In Season 2, the Klatts are finally getting back to normality until Wanda is caught seemingly red-handed standing over a dead body.
    — Jesse Whittock, Deadline, 15 July 2026
  • Sometimes there’s no need to look any further than normality.
    — TIME, Time, 26 June 2026
Definition of normality
Noun
  • While CinemaCon 2026 brought us exciting news about new films, it was also bogged down with status quo nothings about how Amazon MGM still hasn’t found a new James Bond.
    — Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 17 Apr. 2026
  • When Dana, who, like Virginia, had been successful in writing pleasant but undistinguished nothings—in her case, songs for Billy Rose’s revues—decided to try taking on more serious music by studying with Boulanger, Virginia entered a deep downward spiral.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 7 Jan. 2026
Definition of nothing
Noun
  • But that is just one expression of its structural bias toward familiarity and averageness.
    — Adam Kirsch, The Atlantic, 15 June 2026
  • Joe, who was selected because of his averageness, turns out to be the smartest person on Earth in the future and lands a job working for President Dwayne Elizondo Mountain Dew Herbert Camacho (Terry Crews).
    — David Faris, TheWeek, 22 Apr. 2026
Definition of averageness
Noun
  • The fact that celebrity landed upon him, plucking him from the obscurity of his mission to represent the burgeoning discourse on the disease, says more about the world that orbited him than his actions on the island or his own political nous.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 20 July 2026
  • In the meantime, Indiana mined a diamond out of a pile of obscurity.
    — Dana O’Neil, CNN Money, 20 July 2026
Definition of obscurity
Noun
  • The rate has been gradually dropping for decades, due to cigarette taxes, tobacco product price hikes, smoking bans, public education campaigns and changes in the social acceptability of lighting up in public.
    — Mike Stobbe, Fortune, 29 May 2026
  • People who feel othered often describe exhaustion from performing acceptability.
    — Jennifer Jay Palumbo, Forbes.com, 26 May 2026
Definition of acceptability
Noun
  • That comes to the Philippines in the form of war, as well as through the invocation, or establishment, of American-style modes of government and education that place Filipinos along this racial hierarchy, identifying them as these inferiors that need to be taught how to govern themselves.
    — Lisa Deaderick, San Diego Union-Tribune, 22 Mar. 2026
Definition of inferior
Noun
  • On one side, a satanic figure named Randall Flagg who gathers his forces of badness to Las Vegas; on the other, the good guys, led by 108-year-old Mother Abigail in, of all places, Boulder.
    — Barbara Ellis, Denver Post, 15 Jan. 2026
  • The show premiered over Thanksgiving weekend, when people were tired and full and bored (and probably also horny), and countered our world’s unceasing badness with its world’s buoyant sweetness.
    — Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 12 Jan. 2026
Definition of badness
Noun
  • Advocates in South Korea and elsewhere have increasingly argued that insects are just as reliable a source of protein as other animal products.
    — Gawon Bae, CNN Money, 23 July 2026
  • These tiny insects are a summertime nuisance that prey on people, pets, and wildlife, including birds, leaving behind an aggravating itch that can last for more than a week.
    — Barbara Gillette, The Spruce, 22 July 2026
Definition of insect

Browse Nearby Words

mediocrities
mediocrity
meditate
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Cite this Entry

“Mediocrity.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mediocrity. Accessed 27 Jul. 2026.

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