as in unacceptable
falling short of a standard
a teacher who rejects substandard work without hesitation
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of substandard
Last year, China’s Supreme People’s Procuratorate reported prosecuting 21,404 individuals for producing and selling counterfeit and substandard goods.
—
Haicen Yang, CNN Money, 5 Sep. 2025
Her relatives describe substandard education and health care there, as well as a generally poor quality of life.
—Angie Leventis Lourgos, Chicago Tribune, 1 Sep. 2025
Homeless people frequently complain about substandard living conditions at shelters, which can be understaffed and sometimes struggle to accommodate residents with mental health and addiction issues.
—Ethan Varian, Mercury News, 1 Sep. 2025
There were allegations of billing irregularities and substandard care.
—Teri Sforza, Oc Register, 22 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for substandard
Haicen Yang, CNN Money, 5 Sep. 2025
Her relatives describe substandard education and health care there, as well as a generally poor quality of life.
—Angie Leventis Lourgos, Chicago Tribune, 1 Sep. 2025
Homeless people frequently complain about substandard living conditions at shelters, which can be understaffed and sometimes struggle to accommodate residents with mental health and addiction issues.
—Ethan Varian, Mercury News, 1 Sep. 2025
There were allegations of billing irregularities and substandard care.
—Teri Sforza, Oc Register, 22 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for substandard
Recent Examples of Synonyms for substandard
Adjective
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The New York State GOP Executive Committee then voted unanimously to revoke the Young Republicans’ charter on October 17, 2025, citing mismanagement and condemning the language as unacceptable in the party or its affiliates.—
Amanda Castro,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 Oct. 2025
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Others are preaching patience, but acknowledge that the status quo is unacceptable.—
Scott Dochterman,
New York Times,
12 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Porter has been a lead creator before, but that was on cellar-dwelling Houston Rockets squads that became a breeding ground for poor habits.—
Fred Katz,
New York Times,
16 Oct. 2025
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Young people want better governance and are fed up with suffering from poor services and economies while their leaders get rich around them and inequality grows.—
Elizabeth Shackelford,
Twin Cities,
16 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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My only complaint is that the light blue stripes on the arm look printed, not stitched, which is kinda lame.—
The Athletic NHL Staff,
New York Times,
17 Oct. 2025
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Another main issue is that the power grind itself now being the endgame is no longer a good motivator to play, nor is the Tier system with 3s not much different than 4s or 5s, and all past weapons being somewhat lame now outside of that system entirely.—
Paul Tassi,
Forbes.com,
13 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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Human nature, however, urges us to do the exact wrong thing.—
Steve Booren,
Denver Post,
19 Oct. 2025
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There's a quote from The Office that's always stuck with me for all the wrong reasons.—
Katherine Polcari,
Southern Living,
19 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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In the meantime, Jones has been carrying a run-deficient offense to the tune of 313 yards per game — the most in the NFL.—
Jerry McDonald,
Mercury News,
16 Oct. 2025
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At least 1,235 miles of the city’s sidewalks, or about 40%, are considered deficient.—
Elliott Wenzler,
Denver Post,
15 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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So sorry, fantasy coaches and anybody that bet on me, my bad.—
Michael Nowels,
Mercury News,
20 Oct. 2025
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Joseph had maybe his worst day of the year.—
Luca Evans,
Denver Post,
20 Oct. 2025
Adjective
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Now, though, voters have a fresh chance to do unwrap a flawed narrative and bring the broader issue out of the shadows.—
Kansas City Star,
Kansas City Star,
17 Oct. 2025
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Most of the older studies on grapefruit for weight loss were small and flawed.—
Brittany Lubeck,
Verywell Health,
17 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Substandard.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/substandard. Accessed 21 Oct. 2025.
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