subprime
Americanadjective
-
being of less than top quality.
a subprime grade of steel.
-
being below a prime rate.
banks engaging in subprime lending.
adjective
noun
Etymology
Origin of subprime
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Marks says he doesn’t detect similar potential risk factors comparable to portfolio insurance or subprime lending.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 15, 2026
The scale of current problems is substantial: AI investment alone is around 17 times that of the 2000 dot-com boom, and four times the 2008 subprime housing crisis.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 9, 2026
In March of 2006 for instance, it put out a paper titled “Prime or Not So Prime” that detailed the risks posed by the securitization of subprime loans in the U.S.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 30, 2026
History has also taught us that the gods like to dish out nasty surprises every few years: dot-com bubbles, subprime mortgage crises, pandemics, etc.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 16, 2026
The subprime mortgage loans being made in early 2005 were, he felt, almost certain to go bad.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
