impair the standard

USAGE SUMMARY

The phrase "impair the standard" is correct and usable in written English.
It can be used when discussing the negative impact on a certain level of quality or expectation. Example: "The recent changes in policy may impair the standard of service we provide to our customers."

✓ Grammatically correct

Science

News & Media

Academia

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

1 human-written examples

At first glance, these two set of data appear to be at odds with reports that excitotoxic lesions of the mPFC (Hannesson et al., 2004) and catecholaminergic depletion in the PL mPFC (Nelson et al., 2011) do not impair the standard NOR test in rodents.

European Neuropsychopharmacology

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

58 human-written examples

However, as the small number of spot samples impaired the standard distribution, a nonparametric method (variance analysis by Kruskal Wallis) was also used.

Critical Care

Sixty-nine participants (38%%) were classified as impaired on the standard neuropsychological exam, and participants who were classified as impaired performed significantly worse on CogState compared to those who were unimpaired (p < 0.001).

Duke University

Furthermore, it has been demonstrated that relative to controls, patients with PD were impaired on the standard WPT task when tested on dopaminergic medication but not in the off state (Jahanshahi et al., 2010).

Human Brain Mapping

Despite preservation of their general cognitive status, the children in the patient cohort were markedly impaired relative to the standard population mean of 100 ± 15 (SD) on nearly every one of the CMS measures.

Cerebral Cortex

These data are consistent with the literature showing that fimbria-fornix lesions [ 10, 31] and administration of CPP [ 32, 33] impair the performance on standard Morris water maze tasks in similar ways.

Behavioral and Brain Functions

Consistent with this, 5-HTTOE mice exhibited markedly impaired fear memory recall in the standard rodent fear conditioning paradigm and were also impaired in the discriminative paradigm after one day of training, although they learned the discrimination with continued training.

Biological Psychiatry

Furthermore, because WT C57BL/6J mice (in contrast to 129S6/SvEv mice) effectively turned downward on the vertical pole and both Cln3−/− and Cln3 Δex7/8 mice on the C57BL/6J background showed impaired ability of turning downward, the standard vertical pole test that takes the sum of turn-downward and climb-down time would reveal a stronger motor phenotype for the C57BL/6J background.

DMM Disease Models and Mechanisms

In 10%, poor technique impaired visualization of pharyngeal structures on the standard projections, but repeat swallows in the oblique projections proved adequate to assess these regions.

Duke University

For h = 2, the tracking was nearly perfect whereas in the standard model tracking was impaired for h = 2 (data not shown).

Plosone

In its brief to the court, the Justice Department said the standard the district court had adopted "threatens seriously to impair enforcement of the act".

The New York Times

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

When using "impair the standard", ensure the context clearly indicates what standard is being affected and the nature of the impairment. Be specific about the consequences or implications of the reduced standard.

Common error

Avoid using "impair the standard" without specifying which standard is being affected. Generic statements can lack impact and leave the reader unclear about the specific problem.

Linguistic Context

The phrase "impair the standard" functions as a verb phrase, indicating an action that negatively affects a particular benchmark or level of quality. It suggests a reduction in the accepted criteria. Ludwig AI affirms its usability.

Expression frequency: Uncommon

Frequent in

Science

30%

News & Media

30%

Academia

20%

Less common in

Formal & Business

10%

Encyclopedias

5%

Wiki

5%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, "impair the standard" is a grammatically correct and usable phrase, as confirmed by Ludwig AI, that means to negatively affect or diminish a specific benchmark or level of quality. While not extremely common, it appears in various contexts, including science, news and media, and academic writing. The phrase conveys concern or criticism about the decline of established criteria. When using this phrase, it's important to be specific about what standard is being impacted and the nature of the consequences. Related phrases like ""compromise the standard"" or "weaken the benchmark" can offer alternative ways to express similar ideas. Being mindful of the specific context will lead to more effective communication.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

compromise the standard

Focuses on weakening or making concessions that lower the established level.

undermine the standard

Suggests a gradual weakening or erosion of the accepted level or measure.

weaken the benchmark

Replaces "standard" with "benchmark", emphasizing a point of reference for evaluation.

degrade the quality

Shifts focus from the standard itself to the resultant quality being reduced.

diminish the level

Emphasizes reducing the degree or amount of something that meets a certain requirement.

affect the norm

Replaces "standard" with "norm", suggesting a deviation from what is typical or expected.

lessen the criterion

Directly implies the requirements or principles used to evaluate something are being reduced.

erode the measure

Suggests a gradual decline in the efficacy or integrity of an evaluation method.

reduce the expectation

Focuses on lowering anticipated outcomes or performance levels.

lower the bar

An idiomatic expression signifying a reduction in required standards or expectations.

FAQs

How can I use "impair the standard" in a sentence?

You can use "impair the standard" when you want to indicate that something is negatively affecting or diminishing a certain level of quality or expectation. For example, "Budget cuts may "compromise the standard" of education in public schools".

What are some alternatives to saying "impair the standard"?

Depending on the context, you could use alternatives like "weaken the benchmark", "degrade the quality", or "undermine the standard".

Is it better to say "impair the standard" or "improve the standard" when discussing changes?

Whether you use "impair the standard" or "improve the standard" depends on the direction of the change you are describing. "Impair" indicates a negative impact, while "improve" indicates a positive one. The choice depends on your intent and what is happening.

What does it mean to "lower the bar" instead of "impair the standard"?

"Lowering the bar" is an idiomatic expression that is closely related to "impair the standard". It means to reduce expectations or requirements, often implying that standards have been deliberately reduced to make something easier to achieve. "Impair the standard" is a more formal and direct way of expressing a similar sentiment.