subpar

adjective

sub·​par ˈsəb-ˌpär 

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

Because of phylloxera, vineyards have been inconsistent and yielding subpar grapes.

—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

… Augusta National never played easier. … Saturday's 30 subpar rounds broke a third-round tournament record …

—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

• bad
• bastard
• bush
• bush-league
• crummy
• crumby
• deficient
• dissatisfactory
• ill
• inferior
• lame
• lousy
• off
• paltry
• poor
• punk
• sour
• suboptimal
• substandard
• unacceptable
• unsatisfactory
• wack [slang]
• wanting
• wretched
• wrong

Examples of subpar in a Sentence

the service at the restaurant was subpar, to say the least

Recent Examples on the Web

Much like the stock market as a whole, a successful investment portfolio typically has exceptional stocks that more than overcome the subpar returns of the duds. —Bill Stone, Forbes, 1 Dec. 2024

Since its launch in Canada two years ago, the streaming service has been offering audiophiles a premium alternative to the subpar sound of more mainstream American platforms. —Ron Hart, SPIN, 29 Nov. 2024

Citing a message sent to operators last Friday, Restaurant Business Online (RBO) reported that the fast-food giant made the decision earlier than initially planned due to its subpar performance. —Wkrc Staff, Baltimore Sun, 25 Nov. 2024

The Mets rebounded from a subpar series over the weekend with an important win in their one-day layover in St. Louis — precisely the type of game that’s easy to lose. —Tim Britton, The Athletic, 6 Aug. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1922, in the meaning defined above