mediocrity

noun

me·​di·​oc·​ri·​ty ˌmē-dē-ˈä-krə-tē 

plural mediocrities

1

a

: the quality or state of being mediocre

came to terms with his mediocrity

b

: moderate ability or value

fed up with the mediocrity of the local schools

2

: a mediocre person

a most intelligent middle-aged mediocrity

—Oscar Wilde

Did you know?

The Enduring Moderation of Mediocre

One of the things that is remarkable about mediocre is the extent to which it has retained its meaning over the course of more than four centuries of continual use. The word, when used as an adjective, has changed very little, if at all, in its meaning since it was used in a 1586 book titled The English Secretorie (our earliest known evidence): “Mediocre, a meane betwixt high and low, vehement and slender, too much and too little as we saye. . . .” The word comes to English via Middle French from the Latin word mediocris, meaning "of medium size, moderate, middling, commonplace," and perhaps originally "halfway to the top." The noun form of mediocre is mediocrity.

Did you know?

People interested in words always point out that mediocrity doesn't mean quite what its main root would indicate: Why doesn't it describe something that's right in the middle of the pack, exactly what you would expect? Instead the words mediocrity and mediocre always suggest disappointment. A mediocre play is one you wish you hadn't wasted an evening on, and the mediocre actor in it should probably find another profession. A person can even be called a mediocrity, though it isn't very nice and you'd never do it to his face.

Examples of mediocrity in a Sentence

We were disappointed by the mediocrity of the wine.

He thought that he was a brilliant artist himself and that all his fellow painters were just mediocrities.

Recent Examples on the Web

In the throes of the Great Depression, the nation looked to Hollywood to buoy its spirts, to escape from mediocrity. —Angelica Aboulhosn, Smithsonian Magazine, 26 Mar. 2024

From coddling mediocrity to solving marital issues, all of their efforts aim to prevent impending violence. —Carlos Aguilar, Los Angeles Times, 15 Mar. 2024

Toss all the deficiencies into a cauldron — the inefficiency, the lack of toughness, the floundering finishes and the talent that doesn’t translate to victories — and the result is an undeniable, enduring mediocrity. —Jon Wilner, The Mercury News, 7 Mar. 2024

Those roots had been long overgrown, buried under mediocrity. —Luca Evans, Orange County Register, 28 Feb. 2024

But now the spotlight has turned to the mediocrity of the candidates that ran under his banner, getting trounced by considerable margins in cities such as Istanbul and Ankara. —Ishaan Tharoor, Washington Post, 2 Apr. 2024

Inevitably, their fall from grace will permeate into an adulthood of mediocrity and low income. —Ryan Hogg, Fortune Europe, 28 Mar. 2024

His trajectory is unprecedented in the Pac-12’s modern era: Coach of the Year honors in each of his first two seasons, then five years of abject mediocrity (or worse) and his walking papers. —Jon Wilner, The Mercury News, 12 Mar. 2024

Daniel Colón-Ramos teaches at the medical school, where the sleazy quack, public-health mediocrity, leaky-lab patron, drug-company shill, and cover-up artist Dr. Fauci delivered a commencement address last year. —Brian T. Allen, National Review, 8 Feb. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Middle English mediokerte, mediocrite "moderation, medium size or amount," borrowed from Middle French & Latin; Middle French mediocrité "intermediate state," borrowed from Latin mediocritāt-, mediocritās "moderateness of size or amount, intermediate character, limited ability," from mediocris "of medium size, moderate, mediocre" + -itāt-, -itās -ity

First Known Use

1588, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Kids Definition

mediocrity

noun

me·​di·​oc·​ri·​ty ˌmēd-ē-ˈäk-rət-ē 

plural mediocrities

1

: the quality or state of being mediocre

2

: a mediocre person