poorly enough

USAGE SUMMARY

"poorly enough" can be used in written English.
It is typically used to describe something that is not of good quality or is lacking in some way. Example: The company's financial reports were poorly enough organized that it was difficult to understand their true financial state.

✓ Grammatically correct

News & Media

Science

Formal & Business

Human-verified examples from authoritative sources

Exact Expressions

27 human-written examples

Do poorly enough, and you'll get a box and a P45.

The Guardian

Then he plays just poorly enough to lose, although sometimes he does not even come close.

The New York Times - Sports

Then, as now, the Lakers played just poorly enough to create a minor panic.

The New York Times - Sports

After starting the season poorly enough to get their coach fired, the Washington Capitals have found their legs.

The New York Times

Others wanted him to do poorly enough that another Cubs pitcher would be brought in to take the save.

The Guardian - Sport

He played poorly enough that he went to the range to hit more shots when it was over.

The New York Times

Human-verified similar examples from authoritative sources

Similar Expressions

30 human-written examples

One answer to that is, of course, our government itself, which had the files poorly protected enough for hundreds of thousands of people to have access.

The New Yorker

These are controlled by the prefrontal cortex, a part of the brain that fares particularly poorly without enough sleep.

Huffington Post

Despite this, the National Hurricane Center noted that, "the deep convection is poorly organized enough that strengthening is unlikely before extratropical transition in 36 hours".

Wikipedia

"The Japanese haven't been big protesters, at least recently," said Junichi Sato, program director of the environmental group Greenpeace Japan, who said he had organized enough poorly attended rallies to know.

The New York Times

Can its social features, however poorly done, provide enough value to users that the shortage of data from competitors like Facebook and Twitter isn't missed?

TechCrunch

Expert writing Tips

Best practice

Use "poorly enough" to indicate a situation where the quality of something is so low that it leads to a specific, often negative, consequence. For example, "The data was formatted poorly enough that it couldn't be used for analysis."

Common error

Avoid using "poorly enough" simply to describe something of low quality. Ensure there's a clear resulting effect implied or stated. For instance, saying "The product was poorly made" is correct, but lacks the implied consequence found in "The product was poorly made enough that it broke after only one use."

Linguistic Context

The phrase "poorly enough" functions as an adverbial modifier, indicating the degree to which an action or state is performed or exists in a substandard manner. According to Ludwig, it signifies that something is not of good quality or is lacking in some way.

Expression frequency: Common

Frequent in

News & Media

58%

Science

17%

Wiki

8%

Less common in

Formal & Business

8%

Encyclopedias

4%

Reference

0%

Ludwig's WRAP-UP

In summary, "poorly enough" is a grammatically correct and commonly used adverbial phrase that indicates a substandard quality sufficient to cause a specific outcome. Ludwig AI confirms its valid usage in written English. While found across different contexts, it appears most frequently in news and media sources. When using this phrase, ensure that the low quality is directly linked to a consequence to maintain clarity and impact. Alternatives like "insufficiently" or "inadequately enough" can be used, but "poorly enough" provides a specific emphasis on the resulting effect of the poor quality.

More alternative expressions

Phrases that express similar concepts, ordered by semantic similarity:

inadequately enough

Direct synonym highlighting the lack of necessary quality to a certain required level.

not good enough

A common expression highlighting the lack of sufficient quality.

not well enough

Simple and straightforward way of expressing insufficient quality, suitable for general contexts.

sufficiently inadequate

Emphasizes inadequacy to a point of sufficiency, implying a marked degree of poorness.

insufficiently

Single-word alternative expressing a lack of what is needed.

badly to the required extent

Highlights the poor quality reaching the needed level for an action to happen.

poorly to the point of

Highlights an action being poor that it results in an outcome.

to a substandard level

Focuses on the result being under an expected or acceptable level.

to a deficient degree

More formal and academic way to describe how something lacks a particular measure.

terribly to the necessary degree

Emphasizes the action being bad, but also to highlight the measure needed.

FAQs

How can I use "poorly enough" in a sentence?

Use "poorly enough" to describe a situation where something is so substandard that it results in a specific consequence. For example, "The presentation was delivered "poorly enough" that the client decided to withdraw from the deal."

What phrases can I use instead of "poorly enough"?

You can use alternatives like "insufficiently", "inadequately enough", or "not well enough" depending on the context.

Is it correct to say "badly enough" instead of "poorly enough"?

While "badly enough" is grammatically correct, ""poorly enough"" is often preferred when describing the quality or execution of something. "Badly enough" might be more appropriate for describing an emotional state or physical condition.

What's the difference between "poorly" and "poorly enough"?

"Poorly" describes something of low quality, while ""poorly enough"" indicates that the low quality is sufficient to cause a specific outcome. For example, "The design was poorly executed" simply states the quality, whereas "The design was executed "poorly enough" that it failed to meet the requirements" explains the impact.