fair to middling

Idioms and Phrases

Mediocre, pretty good, so-so, as in I asked them how they liked their new home and John answered, “Fair to middling . This phrase, often a reply to an inquiry about one's health, business, or the like, is redundant, since fair and middling both mean “moderately good.” [Mid-1800s] Also see can't complain .

Example Sentences

Things were going fair to middling with his candidacy until Biden’s catastrophic, catatonic debate performance in June, which caused a major Democratic freak-out and resulted in his grudging departure from the ticket and endorsement of Harris.

From Los Angeles Times

Part of a mission to help measure what is going on below the Martian surface, InSight had a seismometer that detected hundreds of small marsquakes during its operational years, as well as several that were fair to middling in energy.

From Scientific American

Who would have thought that a movie that got only fair to middling reviews when it premiered would wind up with a live musical experience and a Diane Sawyer special?

From Los Angeles Times

Woollcott finally caught up with the show two years into its run, describing it in the New York Sun as “fair to middling and uneventful,” while adding that he was baffled by its success but also by his colleagues’ vitriol toward it.

From New York Times

Isaac cage match, which supplies fair to middling action and sentiment and consistently satisfying laughs.

From New York Times