a fair performance

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "a fair performance" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used to describe a performance that is satisfactory or acceptable, but not exceptional. Example: "The actor delivered a fair performance, meeting the audience's expectations without leaving a lasting impression."

✓ Grammatically correct

Science

News & Media

Formal & Business

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

18 human-written examples

Jarryd Hayne only needs a fair performance in the dead rubber third game to win the coveted Player of the Series gong.

The Guardian - Sport

And the drop was a fairly dramatic one in 2012, despite a fair performance across the board from the big six fourr made it over the $2bn mark in international markets), and a year that contained a No 3 entry for Disney, Avengers Assemble, on the all-time list.

The Guardian - Film

They also suggest that a fair performance evaluation should utilize more behavioral and qualitative measures such as leadership and mentoring for younger researchers, and bottom-up (e.g., R&D researchers' evaluation of their own bosses, say, R&D managers) as well as horizontal (e.g., peers and/or colleagues) evaluation schemes.

Omega

This means that in their assessment, either self-assessment or peer-assessment, they do not show a fair performance.

Asian-Pacific Journal of Second and Foreign Language Education

"He was probably getting a bit lonely in front, but it's a fair performance on his third run over fences," jockey Brian Hughes said.

BBC

The proposed unified optimization framework allows for a fair performance comparison of different scheduling rules, different allocation strategies, different MRT/MRC-based MIMO configurations, and different traffic scenarios.

EURASIP Journal on Wireless Communications and Networking

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

42 human-written examples

(With wine pairings, the bill at either restaurant can easily exceed $300 for one person). Customers at Next and Alinea pay a mandatory 20percentt service charge, a system that co-owner Nick Kokonas says allows him to pay all his employees a fair, performance-based wage, whether they're waiters or sous-chefs.

HuffPost

Among other purposes, e.g. to monitor quality of care and utilization of services, one of their most important applications is a fair, performance-based allocation of available resources among hospitals.

BMC Medical Informatics and Decision Making

Horovitz, 43, had managed a pretty fair performance herself, finishing 19th.

The New York Times - Sports

The University is responsible for providing an effective and fair performance management system.

University of California, Berkeley

The ROCAUC for oliguria as a predictor of subsequent AKI-Cr showed a statistically significant, but only fair performance (ROCAUC = 0.75, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.64-0.85).

Critical Care

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

When describing an evaluation process, use "a fair performance" to indicate that all parties involved were treated equitably and the outcome was unbiased.

Common error

Avoid using "a fair performance" when you mean an outstanding or exceptional performance. "Fair" suggests adequacy or acceptability, not superiority. Instead of a fair performance, you can use "excellent performance", "outstanding performance", or "exceptional performance" for strong expression.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "a fair performance" functions as a noun phrase, with "fair" acting as an adjective that modifies the noun "performance". It generally describes the quality of an action or task, as indicated by Ludwig.

Expression frequency: Common

Frequent in

Science

40%

News & Media

33%

Formal & Business

13%

Less common in

Academia

6%

Encyclopedias

4%

Wiki

4%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

The phrase "a fair performance" is grammatically correct and commonly used to describe something that is adequate, acceptable, or meets the minimum requirements. As Ludwig AI explains, it is suitable across diverse contexts, including scientific, news media, and formal business settings. While not denoting exceptional achievement, it conveys that expectations have been met. Related phrases include "a decent performance" and "an adequate performance". Ensure to use "a fair performance" when the intent is to communicate satisfactory execution without implying outstanding quality, or be careful with expressing a stronger appreciation with "excellent performance", if that's the case.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

a legitimate performance

Replaces "fair" with "legitimate", suggesting authenticity or validity in the performance.

a reasonable performance

Substitutes "fair" with "reasonable", indicating a performance that meets expectations without being exceptional.

a decent performance

Replaces "fair" with "decent", denoting an acceptable or satisfactory level of performance.

a satisfactory performance

Replaces "fair" with "satisfactory", explicitly stating that the performance meets required standards.

a honest performance

Changes "fair" to "honest", implying sincerity and lack of artifice in the performance.

a fair functioning

Shifts from "performance" to "functioning", focusing on operational adequacy rather than artistic merit.

a faithful performance

Substitutes "fair" with "faithful", indicating a performance that closely adheres to the original intent or source material.

a balanced performance

Replaces "fair" with "balanced", suggesting an even distribution of strengths and weaknesses in the performance.

a correct performance

Changes "fair" to "correct", implying accuracy and adherence to standards in the performance.

a good performance

Emphasizes a higher level of quality compared to a "fair" one, suggesting above-average achievement.

FAQs

How can I use "a fair performance" in a sentence?

You can use "a fair performance" to describe something that is adequate or acceptable, but not exceptional. For instance, "The team put in a fair performance, securing a respectable mid-table finish."

What's the difference between "a fair performance" and "a good performance"?

"A fair performance" suggests that something is adequate or meets the minimum requirements. "A good performance", on the other hand, indicates something is above average and commendable.

What can I say instead of "a fair performance"?

You can use alternatives like "a decent performance", "an adequate performance", or "a satisfactory performance" depending on the context.

Is it correct to say "a fair performance" in a formal setting?

Yes, using "a fair performance" is acceptable in formal settings to describe a performance that meets the required standards without being exceptional. However, ensure it accurately reflects the situation and isn't misinterpreted as overly critical or dismissive.