markhu26
what‘s the meaning of " fair" ? how often used in this way?can't find in dictionary His marks in his final exams were fair to disappointing.
Jul 3, 2017 1:29 PM
Answers · 4
1
In this context, 'fair' would mean 'sufficient but not ample' or 'adequate but not great' Definition 10 https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/fair
July 3, 2017
School grades are indicated in a variety of ways. Sometimes they are "numeric grades" on a scale of 0 to 100, or 1 to 5. Sometimes they are "letter grades;" in the U.S., commonly A, B, C, D, F, with or without intermediate grades indicated by + or - signs. Sometimes they are just words, when the idea is to show that the grade is not very precise. One traditional set of words is: "Excellent, Very good, Good, Fair, Poor, Failing." As a grade or an evaluation, "Fair" means "acceptable, but not good." "Would you recommend XYZ as a house painter?" "He's only fair. No complaints, but I don't think we'll use him again."
July 3, 2017
BE FAIR TO = depending on context, it might mean something average, not especially good. The meaning of the sentence is that his marks were not excellent, they were almost disappointing, but at the same time, they were not very bad. Yes, you can use it all right.
July 3, 2017
No one likes to be called "fair" or "average". There is an expression, "damned by faint praise".
July 3, 2017
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