(uncountable) The condition of being mediocre; having only an average degree of quality, skills etc.; no better than standard.
Used in a Sentence
mediocrity
Definitions, parts of speech, synonyms, and sentence examples for mediocrity.
Editorial note
It's a mistake to think that corporate mediocrity follows from employee mediocrity.
Examples16
Definitions3
Parts of speech1
Quick take
(uncountable) The condition of being mediocre; having only an average degree of quality, skills etc.; no better than standard.
Meaning at a glance
The clearest senses and uses of mediocrity gathered in one view.
(countable) A person with mediocre abilities or achievements.
(archaic) The quality of being intermediate between two extremes; a mean.
Definitions
Core meanings and parts of speech for mediocrity.
noun
(uncountable) The condition of being mediocre; having only an average degree of quality, skills etc.; no better than standard.
See also: second-rater, averageness
noun
(countable) A person with mediocre abilities or achievements.
See also: second-rater, averageness
noun
(archaic) The quality of being intermediate between two extremes; a mean.
See also: second-rater, averageness
Example sentences
It's a mistake to think that corporate mediocrity follows from employee mediocrity.
Which means it is essentially unfair, capricious, and creates incentives to endless mediocrity and pandering.
It's yet another celebration of technical mediocrity that has caused computing to never really live up to its potential.
If you can sufficiently insulate a group from the corporation in general, sure, you can do better than corporate mediocrity.
Competent people cannot choose who to work with so whatever extra they do is lost in the mediocrity that surrounds them.
Some of the claims Lazlo makes: As large organizations grow, their workforce trends towards mediocrity.
Better to fight for a good and beautiful idea than to live with mediocrity.
Facebook has some exceptionally good programmers, due to its financial fortune, but the mediocrity of vision and hubris at the helm persist.
But it will lose its power and relevance in a sea of mediocrity.
You even get bands which then fall into mediocrity after a fantastic debut.
To be fair, there is still mediocrity left in computing.
Some event happens which painfully reminds them of mediocrity in computing, that gives them the drive again and they resume right where they left from Limbo.
Quote examples
This heaviness is driving me to take back control of my life and design my own future rather than "settling" for mediocrity!
And the even catchier: "Mediocrity borrows, genius steals" which I've never seen attributed to anyone.
What you are really experiencing is resentment for others success and you are projecting your mediocrity as positive achievements." I found Inside Out wildly entertaining.
As they grow, companies tend to optimize for mediocrity - "We can't pay $X for someone really valuable because it would upset the (good but) less valuable team members."
Frequently asked questions
Short answers drawn from the clearest meanings and examples for this word.
How do you use mediocrity in a sentence?
It's a mistake to think that corporate mediocrity follows from employee mediocrity.
What does mediocrity mean?
(uncountable) The condition of being mediocre; having only an average degree of quality, skills etc.; no better than standard.
What part of speech is mediocrity?
mediocrity is commonly used as noun.