substandard

adjective

ˌsəb-ˈstan-dərd How to pronounce substandard (audio)
Definition of substandardnext
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

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 substandard The World Health Organization has warned that increasingly complex international supply chains and the growth of e-commerce make controlling substandard and falsified health products particularly difficult. — Andrew Yockey, Fortune, 15 Oct. 2026 Construction standards in the country are often poorly enforced, and many structures are built with substandard materials. — Sophia Saifi, CNN Money, 15 Oct. 2026 This creates a perverse financial incentive for unethical operators to provide substandard care – or even interfere with recovery. — Ilan Shrira, The Conversation, 13 Oct. 2026 These judges are far less likely to release immigrants on bond or parole, keeping them trapped in what detainees and advocates say are substandard conditions. — Gaby Del Valle, The Verge, 8 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for substandard
Recent Examples of Synonyms for substandard
  1. unacceptable
  2. poor
  3. wrong
  4. lame
  5. deficient
  6. bad
  7. inferior
  8. flawed
Adjective
  • Detection is no substitute for prevention, not when consequences are truly unacceptable.
    — Andrew Ginter, Forbes.com, 20 Oct. 2026
  • The win won’t change what’s frankly been an unacceptable campaign for a program that was 18-1-4 just two seasons ago.
    — Ryan Kartje, Los Angeles Times, 19 Oct. 2026
Definition of unacceptable
Adjective
  • Measles usually kills two or three people in every 1,000 cases, the WHO says, but the disease can be more deadly in poorer nations because of factors such as malnutrition.
    — Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 18 Oct. 2026
  • That receiver sends that poor defender into next week at the pylon.
    — Zach Dean OutKick, FOXNews.com, 17 Oct. 2026
Definition of poor
Adjective
  • Without it, the language model is a very expensive way to write faster emails to the wrong people.
    — Stephen Messer, Fortune, 23 Oct. 2026
  • Those chats tended to include what was going right or wrong or could be better.
    — Kansas City Star, Kansas City Star, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of wrong
Adjective
  • Poetry gets left behind by the exigency of character development or, in the movie’s self-defeating logic, because the art form doesn’t really matter and is only a lame excuse for people who won’t take responsibility and grow up.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 16 Oct. 2026
  • Blumenthal hopes to see action on KOSA in the lame-duck session.
    — Lisa Hagen, Hartford Courant, 2 Oct. 2026
Definition of lame
Adjective
  • The travel investigation doesn't establish that the firm's engineering designs were deficient and nothing in the records independently establishes that the performance adjustment was improper.
    — Tyler Horst, CBS News, 15 Oct. 2026
  • There’s lots of neutral hues available but the sunny yellow will brighten up any window-deficient bathroom.
    — Audrey Lee, Architectural Digest, 6 Oct. 2026
Definition of deficient
Adjective
  • High oil prices are bad for Asia, which imports most of its fuel.
    — Jim Edwards, Fortune, 22 Oct. 2026
  • Futures are worse, Asia closed deep in the red, and Europe is also broadly lower.
    — Leonie Kidd, CNBC, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of bad
Adjective
  • The idea is to sound like an inferior buck in the brush, one that is roaming around a mature deer’s space and getting on his nerves.
    — Michael Hanback, Outdoor Life, 14 Oct. 2026
  • Only 272 yards, at home, against a UCLA team that unquestionably has inferior talent?
    — Ian Miller OutKick, FOXNews.com, 11 Oct. 2026
Definition of inferior
Adjective
  • The extra baggage negates the weightlessness, revealing a more flawed and earthbound iteration of the band.
    — Gabriel Szatan, Pitchfork, 18 Oct. 2026
  • But rather than hail this trend as proof of AI’s skyrocketing potential, many in the field — skeptics and boosters alike — take it as evidence that benchmarking itself has become fatally flawed.
    — Quanta Magazine, Quanta Magazine, 16 Oct. 2026
Definition of flawed

Browse Nearby Words

substances
substandard
substantial
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Cite this Entry

“Substandard.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/substandard. Accessed 24 Oct. 2026.

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