Both Uses of

inferior
in
Middlemarch

Mr. Tucker was the middle-aged curate, one of the "inferior clergy," who are usually not wanting in sons.†
Chpt 1 *

inferior = (adjective) of low quality, or of lower quality or rank than something else OR (more rarely as a noun) a person of lower rank or status

"Impossible," said Mary, relapsing into her usual tone; "husbands are an inferior class of men, who require keeping in order."†
Chpt 8

Definitions:

(1) (inferior)
of low quality, or of lower quality or rank than something else -- sometimes used as a noun to refer to a person of lower rank or status
(2) (meaning too rare to warrant focus)
meaning too rare to warrant focus:

Less commonly, specialized senses include:
- anatomy and botany -- a lower position on a body or plant (or pointed downward)
- typography -- a character that drops beneath a printing line (such as with subscript)
- astronomy -- having an orbit relative to the sun that is lower than earth's (making Mercury and Venus inferior planets)