as in unacceptable
falling short of a standard
the service at the restaurant was subpar, to say the least
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of subpar
Minnesota’s decision-making and execution were subpar, at best.
—
Jace Frederick, Twin Cities, 7 May 2026
Verstappen, who won four championships from 2021 through 2024, was voted by fellow drivers and team bosses as the greatest driver last year after dragging a subpar car to within inches of a fifth title, narrowly losing out to McLaren’s Lando Norris.
—Sahil Kapur, NBC news, 1 May 2026
That's subpar compared with the $599 Even Realities G2, which can comfortably last the day with regular use.
—Will Greenwald, PC Magazine, 29 Apr. 2026
An 'extreme situation' Former Navy officials said the pictures of service members' subpar meals looked markedly worse than the quality of eats during their time in Navy service.
—Cybele Mayes-Osterman, USA Today, 29 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for subpar
Jace Frederick, Twin Cities, 7 May 2026
Verstappen, who won four championships from 2021 through 2024, was voted by fellow drivers and team bosses as the greatest driver last year after dragging a subpar car to within inches of a fifth title, narrowly losing out to McLaren’s Lando Norris.
—Sahil Kapur, NBC news, 1 May 2026
That's subpar compared with the $599 Even Realities G2, which can comfortably last the day with regular use.
—Will Greenwald, PC Magazine, 29 Apr. 2026
An 'extreme situation' Former Navy officials said the pictures of service members' subpar meals looked markedly worse than the quality of eats during their time in Navy service.
—Cybele Mayes-Osterman, USA Today, 29 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for subpar
Recent Examples of Synonyms for subpar
Adjective
-
That could include fees for access, which Washington says would be unacceptable.—
Reuters,
NBC news,
20 May 2026
-
Speakers at Tuesday’s rally argued this was unacceptable.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
20 May 2026
Adjective
-
After wildfires hit Georgia in April 2026 fueled by a rain deficit, high winds and low humidity, — among other causes, per NASA — neighboring states got slammed with poor air quality alerts.—
Ryan Brennan
May 19,
Kansas City Star,
19 May 2026
-
However his attitude on health care and taxes places Newsom at odds with advocates for poor Californians who would be affected and their allies in the Legislature, many of whom want a tax increase.—
Dan Walters,
Mercury News,
19 May 2026
Adjective
-
The following seasons saw a wrong turn and regression to the point where many supporters gave up.—
Carl Anka,
New York Times,
17 May 2026
-
For most people, this is where the cocktail goes wrong.—
Jason O'Bryan,
Robb Report,
16 May 2026
Adjective
-
By the way, getting excited about a schedule release even on the face of it, without all the pomp and circumstance of social media managers sniffing their own farts, is lame.—
Austin Perry OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
15 May 2026
-
This idea that just sitting with your face buried in your phone when you’re supposed to be in a social setting—that’s lame, right?—
Charlie Warzel,
The Atlantic,
24 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
West Ham showed themselves to be a bad team, less than the sum of their parts and wholly ill-equipped for the challenge in front of them.—
George Caulkin,
New York Times,
18 May 2026
-
Each reiteration and exaggeration of Mary’s bad behavior is another civic stroke of the chisel that perfects the monumental Lincoln in our collective imagination.—
Thomas Mallon,
New Yorker,
18 May 2026
Adjective
-
So far, results are most promising for people with abnormally high blood pressure who are deficient in the mineral, said Jocelyn Edwards, Pharm.—
Stephanie Anderson Witmer,
Health,
12 May 2026
-
All babies are born deficient in vitamin K, which is vital to blood clotting, and cannot form what are called clotting factors, or substances in the body that help stop bleeding naturally.—
Mary Walrath-Holdridge,
USA Today,
8 May 2026
Adjective
-
Residents describe ‘a terrible night’ More than 30 people were injured in the apartment building collapse, while emergency workers rescued 28 residents, Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said.—
Samya Kullab,
Los Angeles Times,
14 May 2026
-
And some were not kind to him on social media following the terrible first round.—
Dan Zaksheske OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
14 May 2026
Adjective
-
Which is horrible, just that amount of women being murdered.—
Ellise Shafer,
Variety,
17 May 2026
-
Hmmm, a book about climate change, economic hardship, labor shortages, rising food prices, and a family having a horrible time?—
Fran Hoepfner,
Vulture,
15 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Subpar.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/subpar. Accessed 23 May. 2026.
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