underperform

U1N1D2E1R1P3E1R1F4O1R1M3

verb

To underachieve; to fail to reach standards or expectations, especially with respect to a financial investment.

Opposite
UncommonScrabble 20

Meanings

verbunderperform (third-person singular simple present underperforms, present participle underperforming, simple past and past participle underperformed)

present singular third person underperforms · participle present underperforming · participle past underperformed · past underperformed

  1. ambitransitiveTo underachieve; to fail to reach standards or expectations, especially with respect to a financial investment.

    Even outside the Anglo-Saxon world, underperforming public companies have become vulnerable to hostile takeover.

    2002, Robert M. Grant, Contemporary Strategy Analysis: Concepts, Techniques, Applications, page 40
    3 more examples

    She inhabits the prose’s terrible serenity and glacial horror — the translator’s hand never overwhelms or underperforms.

    2016 February 2, Porochista Khakpour, “‘The Vegetarian,’ by Han Kang”, in The New York Times

    Jesus' finishing has been one of the main concerns - since the start of last season the 23-year-old has underperformed his Premier League expected goals tally by 6.97goals (in short, he has scored seven fewer goals than would be expected from the chances presented to him).

    2021 February 4, Raj Chohan, “Erling Braut Haaland: Would Man City, Liverpool, Man Utd or Chelsea suit striker best?”, in BBC Sport

    Former HS2 Ltd chairman Sir David Higgins provided a timely reminder of why Britain needs HS2 in a letter to The Times on September 25, in which he asked: "Why are so few FTSE 100 companies based outside the South East? Why is there such a brain drain of graduates from the North? Why do northern cities underperform compared with their European counterparts?

    2023 October 4, Philip Haigh, “HS2's rising costs: government only has itself to blame”, in RAIL, number 993, page 53

Synonyms & antonyms

Opposite

verbperform less well or with less success than expected

Broader
Also see

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*h₁én
  2. Proto-Indo-European*h₁entér
  3. Proto-Indo-European*h₂én
  4. Proto-Indo-European*dʰeh₁-?
  5. Proto-Indo-European*(H)n̥dʰí
  6. Proto-Indo-European*(H)n̥dʰér
  7. Proto-Germanic*under
  8. Proto-West Germanic*undar
  9. Old Englishunder-
  10. Middle Englishunder-
  11. Englishunder-
  12. Englishperform
  13. Englishunderperform

From under- + perform.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Chinese Mandarin 表現不佳 /表现不佳
  • 表現不佳 /表现不佳 (biǎoxiàn bùjiā)underachieve; to fail to reach standards or expectations
Finnish alisuoriutua, alisuorittaa
  • alisuoriutuaunderachieve; to fail to reach standards or expectations
  • alisuorittaaunderachieve; to fail to reach standards or expectations
German but see hinter den Erwartungen zurückbleiben, die Erwartungen enttäuschen
  • but see hinter den Erwartungen zurückbleibenunderachieve; to fail to reach standards or expectations
  • die Erwartungen enttäuschenunderachieve; to fail to reach standards or expectations
  • unterdurchschnittlich abschneidenunderachieve; to fail to reach standards or expectations
Polish but see dokonywać, dokonać
  • but see dokonywaćunderachieve; to fail to reach standards or expectations
  • dokonaćunderachieve; to fail to reach standards or expectations
Romanian subperforma
  • subperformaunderachieve; to fail to reach standards or expectations
Spanish menosdesempeñarse, menosdesempeñar
  • menosdesempeñarseunderachieve; to fail to reach standards or expectations
  • menosdesempeñarunderachieve; to fail to reach standards or expectations
Swedish underprestera
  • underpresteraunderachieve; to fail to reach standards or expectations
Cite this entry
APA

underperform. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/underperform

MLA

“underperform.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/underperform. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “underperform,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/underperform.

Source: underperform on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.