SUBSTANDARD Synonyms: 177 Similar and Opposite Words

substandard

adjective

ˌsəb-ˈstan-dərd

Definition of substandard

as in unacceptable

falling short of a standard a teacher who rejects substandard work without hesitation

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 substandard Young detainees have described inedible food, substandard medical care and callous treatment at the hands of guards and staff at immigration facilities. — Sonja Sharp, Los Angeles Times, 19 Aug. 2026 Trump paid them substandard wages, and their working conditions were appalling. — Kai Bird, New Yorker, 3 Aug. 2026 Cyclospora is most common in tropical climates and areas with substandard sanitation. — Nicholas Florko, The Atlantic, 11 July 2026 So the team studied medical practice laws in other states, actions by their medical boards involving alternative medicine and board orders for substandard care. — Carrie Teegardin, AJC.com, 8 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for substandard

Recent Examples of Synonyms for substandard

Adjective

Laying an egg against the Raiders in Year 3 of the Harbaugh era is unacceptable.

— Alejandro Avila OutKick, FOXNews.com, 21 Sep. 2026
Kip Dellinger Santa Monica The type of play by the Chargers on Sunday was completely unacceptable, lackluster and disappointing for a team with Super Bowl aspirations.

— Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 19 Sep. 2026

Definition of unacceptable

Adjective

Renovation will only yield temporary improvement unless the original cause of a poor-quality lawn is remedied.

— Mary Marlowe Leverette, Southern Living, 19 Sep. 2026
The consequences of a poor performance in the takeaway department sets a very high standard for rookies, something that can only bode well for the future.

— Miami Herald, Miami Herald, 19 Sep. 2026

Definition of poor

Adjective

Who wouldn’t like to whip out a formula that enabled you to judge this action as evil and the other as merely wrong?

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 18 Sep. 2026
The helicopter, which was used by NBC and Telemundo, crashed about two hours after police say Rios drove her 2004 Ford Expedition the wrong way down a busy avenue, ran a red light and struck a vehicle before hitting the bus.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 17 Sep. 2026

Definition of wrong

Adjective

The next big issue for me was that Axl shimmied from side to side with an unusual snakelike move that struck me as effeminate and lame.

— Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 15 Sep. 2026
Trump, meanwhile, will be at best a lame-duck president within weeks of the summit—or worse, if the Democrats are able to take back the House or the Senate.

— Jonathan A. Czin, The Atlantic, 14 Sep. 2026

Definition of lame

Adjective

High base, cuts to public capex for meeting fiscal deficit targets and the impact of deficient rains on sowing patterns are some of the key reasons the brokerage expects India’s growth to slow over the next few quarters.

— Priyanka Salve, CNBC, 14 Sep. 2026
There is nonexistent depth, disastrous allocation of resources and a roster so deficient that the general manager who constructed it has already been dismissed.

— Chandler Rome, New York Times, 13 Sep. 2026

Definition of deficient

Adjective

The term, once confined to technical science papers, has gripped Silicon Valley, steered trillions of dollars in investment and fanned fears of human displacement, or worse.

— George Musser, Scientific American, 17 Sep. 2026
That’s cool that people (liked it), but that’s bad ball security.

— Taylor Eldridge, Kansas City Star, 17 Sep. 2026

Definition of bad

Adjective

Teams — worried about how a politically defiant Black quarterback on the roster would impact their bottom lines — over the next several seasons signed dozens of inferior quarterbacks to round out their depth charts.

— Mike Jones, New York Times, 15 Sep. 2026
Luckily for the Hurricanes, the rest of their game on defense has held up against a pair of inferior opponents.

— Jordan McPherson, Miami Herald, 15 Sep. 2026

Definition of inferior

Adjective

What is left is the bond of a group of women who survived this beautifully flawed universe together, who leave behind twenty-plus years of laughter, chaos, and guilty pleasures for millions of people.

— Ile-Ife Okantah, Vulture, 21 Sep. 2026
The defense told jurors prosecutors are relying on the salacious affair to prove its case, arguing the decision to charge the former worship leader stemmed from a flawed investigation, rush to judgment and lack of direct evidence.

— Nicki Brown, CNN Money, 19 Sep. 2026

Definition of flawed

Browse Nearby Words

substances

substandard

substantial

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“Substandard.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/substandard. Accessed 23 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of substandard

adjective

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