no great shakes

Idioms  

1. Nothing out of the ordinary, mediocre, as in I'm afraid the new pitcher is no great shakes, or What I did with this decorating project was no great shakes. This term possibly alludes to the shaking of dice, which most often yields a mediocre result, but there is no evidence to support this theory. [Early 1800s]

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Example Sentences

I know Napoli have been no great shakes in Europe but they still rarely lose at home and that was a statement win for Liam Rosenior, which should silence some of his doubters.

From BBC • Jan. 29, 2026

Its overall handling of mental illness is no great shakes either.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 6, 2023

Their two previous quarterfinal duels at Roland Garros were actually no great shakes.

From New York Times • May 30, 2022

Inheriting a floundering Rainbow program, he turned it around to go 18-11 his last two years with a high-flying offense, though the Hawaii defense was no great shakes.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 14, 2020

Though ultimately no great shakes, the projects were proposed and illustrated with such enthusiasm that even the most hardened ten-year-old could be tricked into believing he was in for some serious fun.

From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris

Related Words

• common
• conventional
• dull
• generic
• humble
• mediocre
• normal
• plain
• simple
• unremarkable
• workaday