mediocrity

C2 Topic:Numbers & Quantity

US /mi.dɪˈɑk.ɹɪ.ti/ UK /miː.dɪˈɒk.ɹɪ.ti/ See IPA manual

noun Freq #25722

Meanings

1

noun
The state of being only average and not very good.

The team's performance slipped into mediocrity after its star players left.
2

noun
A person with only ordinary, second-rate abilities.

He feared he would be remembered as a mediocrity rather than a genius.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · the state of being only... averagenessmiddlingness

2 noun · a person with only... second-rater

Word family

Forms mediocrities

Derived forms mediocritistmediocritizemultimediocritysubmediocrity

Related forms mean median mediate mediation mediator mediocre medium

Etymology

From Middle French médiocrité, from Latin mediocritās, from mediocris; by surface analysis, mediocre + -ity.

médiocrité Middle French mediocritās Latin *h₂eḱ- Proto-Indo-European

View etymology graph ->

Topics

Numbers & Quantity Word Formation & Derivatives

# mediocrity

**Type:** Word
**Level:** C2
**Part of speech:** noun
**IPA (US):** mi.dɪˈɑk.ɹɪ.ti
**IPA (UK):** miː.dɪˈɒk.ɹɪ.ti
**Frequency rank:** 25722

## Meanings
1. The state of being only average and not very good.
2. A person with only ordinary, second-rate abilities.

## Examples
- The team's performance slipped into mediocrity after its star players left.
- He feared he would be remembered as a mediocrity rather than a genius.

## Derived Forms
- mediocritist
- mediocritize
- multimediocrity
- submediocrity

## Related Forms
- mean
- median
- mediate
- mediation
- mediator
- mediocre
- medium

## Roots and Affixes
- Root: médiocrité
- Root: mediocritās
- Root: *h₂eḱ-

## Etymology
From Middle French médiocrité, from Latin mediocritās, from mediocris; by surface analysis, mediocre + -ity.

## AI Etymology
Mediocrity is from Middle French médiocrité, from Latin mediocritās, from mediocris; by surface analysis, mediocre + -ity. The analysis is mainly morphological: the modern nominal form is built from the named base and affix. Important recorded forms include médiocrité (Middle French), mediocritās (Latin), and *h₂eḱ- (Proto-Indo-European). Current senses include the state of being only average and not very good and a person with only ordinary, second-rate abilities. The wider family includes derived forms such as mediocritist, mediocritize, multimediocrity, and submediocrity; related words such as mean, median, mediate, and mediation.

## Topics
- Numbers & Quantity
- Word Formation & Derivatives

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