variants
or less commonly sub-par
chiefly US
: below par: such as
a
: below a usual or normal level or standard
subpar attendance
a subpar performance
Why would a major football school fire a successful coach following a single subpar season?—
Jerry Kirshenbaum
Jerry KirshenbaumBecause of phylloxera, vineyards have been inconsistent and yielding subpar grapes.—James Laube
James Laube
b
golf
: having a score lower than par
His 19 birdies and two eagles gave him more subpar holes than anyone …—David Barrett
David Barrett… Augusta National never played easier. … Saturday's 30 subpar rounds broke a third-round tournament record …—John Garrity
John Garrity
Did you know?
Since sub- means "below", almost anything that fails to measure up to a traditional standard may be called subpar. So you may hear of subpar ratings for a TV show, subpar care at a nursing home, subpar attendance at a concert, or subpar work by a contractor. If you played a subpar round of golf, though, you needed more strokes than you should have.
Synonyms
Examples of subpar in a Sentence
the service at the restaurant was subpar, to say the least
Recent Examples on the Web
Even the big brothers within the organization had to put up with subpar conditions.
—Makena Kelly, WIRED, 5 Nov. 2024
Their defense was subpar across the board, and particularly poor in the infield (111.3 grounder multiplier).
—Tony Blengino, Forbes, 23 Oct. 2024
This leads to higher prices and sometimes subpar output.
—Bjorn Lomborg, Foreign Affairs, 15 Aug. 2017
The sharpshooting wing is a specialist, and after young forward Kendall Brown had many subpar performances for Indiana during summer league play, Swider had a chance to make the squad.
—Tony East, Forbes, 29 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for subpar 
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Makena Kelly, WIRED, 5 Nov. 2024
Their defense was subpar across the board, and particularly poor in the infield (111.3 grounder multiplier).
—Tony Blengino, Forbes, 23 Oct. 2024
This leads to higher prices and sometimes subpar output.
—Bjorn Lomborg, Foreign Affairs, 15 Aug. 2017
The sharpshooting wing is a specialist, and after young forward Kendall Brown had many subpar performances for Indiana during summer league play, Swider had a chance to make the squad.
—Tony East, Forbes, 29 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for subpar
Dictionary Entries Near subpar
Cite this Entry
“Subpar.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/subpar. Accessed 1 Dec. 2024.
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