second-rate

American  

[sek-uhnd-reyt] / ˈsɛk əndˈreɪt /

adjective

1. of lesser or minor quality, importance, or the like.

   a second-rate poet.

2. inferior; mediocre.

   a second-rate performance.

   Synonyms:

   commonplace, pedestrian, undistinguished, inadequate, middling

---

second-rate British  

adjective

1. not of the highest quality; mediocre

2. second in importance, etc

---

Other Word Forms

• second-rateness noun
• second-rater noun
• secondrater noun

Etymology

Origin of second-rate

First recorded in 1660–70

Example Sentences

Now small investors may finally be invited into private deals, but probably only second-rate ones for confiscatory fees.

From The Wall Street Journal

Outwardly unassuming and privately acerbic, Martin Gilmour teaches at a second-rate English university that, in his words, “tended to attract the stupid rich.”

From The Wall Street Journal

They also require the world to shower prizes on them for their bumbling, second-rate work.

From Salon

With Netflix’s algorithmic approach and its need to keep its shelves overflowing with mostly second-rate material, might not the result veer toward AI slop?

From The Wall Street Journal

China’s most famous AI export has already shown that it can close that gap with second-rate hardware.

From The Wall Street Journal

Related Words

• crummy
• inferior