garden-variety

American  

[gahr-dn-vuh-rahy-i-tee] / ˈgɑr dn vəˌraɪ ɪ ti /

adjective

1. common, usual, or ordinary; unexceptional.

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garden variety Idioms  

1. Ordinary, common, as in I don't want anything special in a VCR—the garden variety will do. This term alludes to a common plant as opposed to a specially bred hybrid. [Colloquial; 1920]

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Etymology

Origin of garden-variety

First recorded in 1925–30

Example Sentences

Colombian writer-director Simón Mesa Soto’s acutely observed Cannes-recognized “A Poet” lays bare that torment with the tale of a has-been writer for whom exquisite suffering has curdled into garden-variety middle-age failure.

From Los Angeles Times

Of course, more force than your typical garden-variety arrest warrant was required, hence the military aspect.

From MarketWatch

But his is no garden-variety housing development.

From BBC

There’s no saying when the next major bear market will send Americans to the mattresses—maybe through the collapse of AI mania, or possibly just a garden-variety recession.

From The Wall Street Journal

There’s no particular reason to think Mr. Roberts is an antisemite or a racist as opposed to a garden-variety fool, and he’s spent the past week reassuring the public that he disagrees with Mr. Fuentes on the substance.

From The Wall Street Journal