run-of-the-mill
[ruhn-uh v-th uh-mil]
- merely average; commonplace; mediocre: just a plain, run-of-the-mill house; a run-of-the-mill performance.
Show More
Origin of run-of-the-mill
First recorded in 1925–30
Synonyms
See more synonyms for run-of-the-mill on Thesaurus.comordinary, routine, everyday.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
run-of-the-mill
- ordinary, average, or undistinguished in quality, character, or nature; not special or excellent
Show More
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
Word Origin and History for run of the mill
run-of-the-mill
adj.
"unspectacular," 1909 in a literal sense, in reference to material yielded by a mill, etc., before sorting for quality (cf. common run "usual, ordinary type," from 1712). Figurative use is from 1922.
Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
run of the mill
Common, ordinary, average: “His performance in the game was neither exemplary nor disastrous; it was simply run of the mill.”
Show More
The New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.
Idioms and Phrases with run of the mill
run of the mill
Ordinary, average, as in There's nothing special about these singers—they're just run of the mill. This expression alludes to fabrics coming directly from a mill without having been sorted or inspected for quality. It has survived such similar phrases as run of the mine and run of the kiln, for the products of mines and kilns. [Late 1800s]
Show More
The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary
Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.